The End of Beginnings
by Word of War
Summary: What's worse than being forced from your home by a darkspawn? Could it be having to move to a place that hates your kind? Mages. Apostates. Different titles, same stereotype, same fear, and Alexandria must hide who she is or be thrown into the Gallows. Carver does his best for her, she's his little sister after all, but a doubt edges on his mind when he sees Alex's raw power.
1. Chapter 1

**Harsh, Cold Lessons**

The cold. That's what she remembers the most.

It was winter, and she was outside chopping wood. It was a chore she hated doing, and a chore she only recently got mildly good at. At least now the wood she chopped didn't have on one half what looked like a stick, and on the other half what still looked like a log when she split it. She also noticed that she was becoming stronger. The axe was slowly getting lighter in her hands as she raised it above her head to bring it crashing down on an unsuspecting log that was ready to be split.

Her hands, which had been soft and velvety for the longest time, were now calloused and tough from all the hard work that needed to be done around the house, and Mother hated it. She missed how soft her hands used to be and was saddened that they would never be like that again because of all the work that needed to be done. There was no way that Father could do it all by himself, so, naturally, she had to step up and help him.

The only reason she was outside chopping wood in the frozen snow with the frigid wind was because of her younger twin sister, Bethany. Bethany had the second child act mastered even though she was the youngest. It was like her and her twin sisters' roles had been switched. This meant that Bethany was very selfish, and her selfishness and search to make a name for herself had lead her to a recruiter for King Cailan's army, who obviously wasn't going to pass up a strong rogue with pretty good looks. Bethany was recruited then and there, and none of her family knew about it.

When Bethany finally told everyone that she was joining the army, Carver, the oldest sibling of the three, had wordlessly gotten up and left their house. The sister with the velvet soft hands had assumed it was to escape and not have to listen to Father's angry speech or Mother's sob story about how she didn't want her baby dying while fighting for a cause she might not wholly believe in. She was wrong, though. Carver hadn't left to avoid the Mother and Father's attempt to get Bethany to rethink her decision, and she found out halfway through Father's teachings.

After Bethany had been sent to her room, Father continued on his schedule like nothing had happened, picked up a big, heavy book, and plopped it down in front of the his child with the velvet soft hands who loved lessons from her Father, but wasn't exactly giddy with excitement about the recent lessons. Father was trying to teach her Tevinter, and she had found the language incredibly hard to learn. Not only was it tough to read, but how you were supposed to speak it was something she did not understand.

"_How can you speak a language that's so cold and harsh just when reading it?" she asked Father once, her eyes, which were the color of the sea after a storm, sparkling with innocence. _

_To which Father had replied, "Well, the Tevinters are a harsh, cold, and cruel people; so it's only fitting that the language match them. And as for your question," he added, his own eyes, which were a mirror of the daughter he was teaching, sparkling with mischief, "to speak the language all you have to do is think mean thoughts. Like lighting kittens on fire or defiling a statue of Andraste in one of the Chantrys."_

"_That's not true Papa," she responded before giggling uncontrollably with Father's thunderous laughter complimenting her giggles. _

Carver had come back in silently while Father and her were halfway through Father's teachings, and silently sat himself down next to her. Father was on the other side, trying to make her practice rolling the r's that were in words better. He didn't interrupt. He waited silently for Father and her to finish up the lesson on a harsh and cold language.

Once they had wrapped up the lesson and closed the book, Carver tapped his sister on the knee with two fingers. It was something they had always done since they were little. She always had to question everything, always had to know who, what, when, where, how, and/or why. Her inquisitive nature had gotten herself in trouble more than once in trouble under the classification of interrupting. The two fingers being tapped on the leg was something that Carver had come up with and had always used until his sister got old enough to not need it anymore, and what it basically was saying when he did it was, "Shut up and listen."

The sister with the velvet soft hands looked at her brother questioningly before her eyes widened in terror at the three words her brother spoke.

"I joined, too."

_What!_ she thought and wanted to scream at him, but, like her brother wanted, she stayed silent and waited to see what happened.

"I hope it's not to make a name for yourself like Bethany who can't see beyond her own, selfish goals and care about others," Father had said coldly. His eyes were glistening with an anger he was trying to smother.

"It isn't," Carver replied shortly. He was looking down at his hands, keeping his eyes hidden underneath his long, jet black hair.

"Then why!" His sister couldn't take the slowness of the conversation anymore. She couldn't take the quiet and so she stood up abruptly, knocking the chair down behind her, and turned to face him. _He promised to never leave! He told me that he would always stay here to protect all of us! _She felt betrayed.

"To make sure that Bethany doesn't get herself killed."

His intention was noble and she knew it was the right thing to do, but for every time that Bethany and him got something to themselves, she had been left out in the cold. She only had two things in her life that were hers and that no one could take away from her. One was her Father's lessons, but she was hating having to learn Tevinter right now. The other was her mabari war hound, Hewie, who she poured her soul and troubles into when Bethany and Carver had so many freedoms she was denied because of Mother and Father's attempt to keep at least one of their children innocent.

"But you promised!" she screamed at Carver before running out into the fields with Hewie in toe, who had been originally sleeping on a rug in the family room. When he sensed his mistress' pain he followed her without hesitation.

Now she was freezing her toes off while Bethany and Carver were sitting pretty up in Denerim training for the army.

It had been two months since they left and Mother and Father were worried about their child that had stayed behind. Sure she was getting stronger and finally getting the hang of doing the hard work Carver and Bethany had always done, but she wasn't as talkative as she used to be. She no longer shared everything with them by telling them how she was feeling or about what she did that day. She also started to take long walks with Hewie, too. She confided everything to that mabari and he rarely left her side. Well, except for today and that was because he hated the cold almost as much as his mistress hated chopping wood.

THWACK!

The last log she needed to chop had just been cleaved in two. Carrying the pieces and the axe in her hands, she trudged through the snow and towards the house. Setting the wood on the pile that had already been started in the summer, she headed over to the shed and put the axe away.

She lived about a mile away from the small village of Lothering. The people who lived _in_ Lothering often commented about how it was a bad idea for them to live so far outside of the village. Something could happen to them and it would take hours before anyone else would hear about it, but that's how her family liked it. That's how Father stayed out of the sight and wrath of the templars.

Cold air blew around her, kicking snow up into the air and nipping at her ears and nose. She moved slowly through the snow that clung to her ankles and prevented her from walking with ease and went over by the fence. She was waiting for Father, who had left to get a couple of things he needed for his job in this village.

He was a healer. Both kinds. He was a master of herbs and a master of entropic spells and spirit healing. He could fix everything, but he only used his magic when he knew that herbs would fail where his Maker given gifts wouldn't. This had caused them to move quite a few times in the past when the templars started sniffing around.

A lone figure appeared on the snow a ways down the "road" that lead from their house to Lothering. Her heart filled with warmth as she saw it was Father and that he had made it back all right. The warmth was short lived, however, when she noticed that Father was stumbling along instead of walking at his normal, bright pace. At first she figured he was just having difficulty with the snow, old age settling in and all, but when he collapsed in the snow she knew something was wrong.

"Papa!" she cried out before hopping the fence and dashing towards him.

The distance between them closed rapidly and soon she was only a few meters away from Father. _Why is the snow red! Snow's not supposed to be red!_ her mind was muddled and she was in both shock and panic when she saw the extent of the wounds Father suffered.

"My dear girl," Father said weakly as she dropped to her knees in the snow next to him. She started to look at the wounds and started to put pressure to try to stop the bleeding, but both of them knew that wouldn't stop his imminent death.

"Papa, how did this happen!" she asked in desperation, her voice filled with pain and panic at what his future most likely held. "Why did this happen! Who did this!

"Sshh..." he replied softly, holding a blood covered finger up to her lip. "You mustn't interrupt, you know that," he caressed her cheek before his hand fell on top of his chest and he winced in pain.

"But you're...let me—" she started.

"No!" he cut off what she was going to say. "The templars, they did this and are on their way. Here," he said quickly, reaching into his coat and pulling out something large and wrapped in a white cloth, "throw this into that tree over there, and don't let the templars find it!" Father thrust it into his daughter's hands.

She did as she was asked and chucked it into the trees branches. Pine needles fell with it as it landed by what she presumed was the trunk. She could no longer see it and hoped that the pine needles and snow would keep it concealed.

That's when the dreaded sound of clinking metal reached her ears.

Templars were not good at sneaking up, not that it mattered. The sound of their metal armor striking and rubbing against itself as they walked was enough to strike fear in to all mages, apostates or no. It was a sound that made them realize that all their previous freedoms were gone, or that they were soon to be taken away from them.

"Papa, you need to get up!" she begged him, her voice sounding much more urgent now. "We need to get you home!"

She started to shake him and pull on him, trying to get him up...but it was no use. He didn't even try to move. Father just lay there, blood pouring out of him. In his eyes she saw something she had never seen before. Defeat.

All her life Father had told her to never give up and that if she wanted something bad enough to go after it and let nothing stop you. But here he lay as a living contradiction to what he had always told her. He had given up. On himself, on his freedom, she didn't know; but she saw his defeat and didn't accept it.

"Come on, Papa!" she screamed at him. She was enraged that he was going to give up and let himself die. She didn't want him to leave her. "You have to get up! Get up! Papa, please! We need to move!"

"Seize her!" a foreign voice called, and the clinking of metal surrounded her.

Hard metal hands grabbed her shoulders as she was dragged from Father. She struggled against them, kicking, jerking, pulling. She did everything she could to get away from them and help Father, but it was all for naught.

Two templars had a hold of her and three more appeared in front of her. Father was _helped_ onto his knees by two of the other templars and kept in place by them, each gripping one of his shoulders with enough force to break it.

"Get away from him!" she roared, throwing herself forward and away from the templars that had a strong hold on her.

The templar with the fancy helmet turned towards her and gave a snort of disgust, "Be thankful that we have decided not to punish you and the rest of your family, _girl_."He turned back to Father and gave a short laugh of what she thought was amusement. "Thought we could run away, didn't we?"

Father said nothing. He didn't even look up.

"Hm. Very well then, I'll make this short." Fancy helmet templar cleared his throat. "You, Malcolm Hawke, stand accused of fleeing the Circle, of fleeing the templars that were in every place that you took residence in, of practicing magic outside of the Circle without permission from any First Enchanter, and of being an apostate." The fancy helmeted templar took a deep, loud breath. "Do you deny any of these claims?"

"Yeah," Father responded hoarsely, "just one though." He looked up at the fancy helmeted templar, his eyes having the old spark she always loved to see. The spark of mischief. "I am not an apostate. I am a mage who wanted to have a happy life, which I did. I am a mage who wanted to have a family, which I did. I am a mage who wanted to taste freedom and have it, which I did. _AND _I am a mage who wanted to live away from templar pricks, such as yourself, which I did and still am going to do because I am going to be at the Maker's side soon."

"You got that right!" The fancy helmeted templar reached for his sword and the next scene played out slower than normal for her.

She saw the templar grip his sword and pull it out of its sheath, the sound of metal slipping out of leather filling her ears. Then she saw him bring back his arm to gain power and momentum before he finally rammed the sword through Father's stomach. Father let out a soft gasp of pain that sounded like a scream echoing in her ears. His eyes widened with shock before the templar ripped out his sword. It glistened with blood that dripped from its end, adding to the red that already stained the snow. Father sagged forward and the templars who were holding him let him fall face first into the snow.

"**NO!" **she screamed, tears tracing her cheeks before she finally was able to tear herself from the templars that held her.

She lunged at the fancy helmeted templar and knocked him on to his back in the snow. His breath was forced from him and she landed on him, tearing his helmet off of him so that she could get at his face.

A few strong blows landed on his face as she wailed on him. She broke his jaw and nose and gave him a few bruises, as well as a future black eye, before she was finally pulled off and thrown into the snow

Landing hard on her side, her eyes fell on Father that was stiller than he was supposed to be. More tears filled her eyes and a soft whimper escaped her. _Why is this happening?_ she asked herself. _Why couldn't we live in peace a few more years?_

"The bitch is fucking crazy!" the fancy helmeted templar roared. "Put her out of her misery!"

One of the templars moved towards her, sword drawn; but someone was looking out for her, and the final blow never came.

Hewie came out of nowhere. Either he had been hiding in the snow, waiting for the opportune moment to come to his mistress' rescue; or he had been so fast and quiet that no one had seen or heard him coming.

He lunged at the templar who had made towards his mistress with the sword and knocked him on his ass before he started to attack. Biting, clawing, growling he tore the templars arm to shreds, and when another swung at him to get him off, he nimbly dodged out of the way and backed off. Hewie had made his point and stood in front of his mistress in a defensive stance still growling and snapping to get them away.

All of them knew that you weren't supposed to mess with a mabari, especially one that was protecting someone and stayed as far from her and her mabari as the fancy helmeted templar would let them.

Yelling orders at his templars, the fancy helmeted templar tried to get them to kill her for hitting him. None of them would have it though. They were either afraid of Hewie or they saw that they had already punished her enough by taking Father away from her.

She could no longer hear the templars. Out of the corners of her eyes she could see some lips moving, heads nodding, and hands moving which symbolized a discussion, but the words didn't register with her. Whether she knew it or not, she was in shock. What had happened had finally caused her brain to shut down, caused it to shut down so that the pain would only reach her in doses and not crush her.

Then they started to walk away. Soon they were out of her vision. And finally they were completely gone and Hewie relaxed and went over to his mistress.

She was gone, lost in what had happened, but he was going to bring her back.

He started by nudging her, rocking her from side to side, but still she would not move. Next, he tried licking her. Her face, her hands, any exposed skin he would run his rough tongue across, but still she would not move. Then, he started to bark in her ears. It was a sound she had often hushed him for and told him to use only when needed, but not even that moved her. Finally, he growled a deep and throaty growl before he sank his teeth into her arm.

"Ah!" she cried as she sat bolt upright, cradling her arm.

Hewie whimpered a little, hanging his head and wagging his little stump of a tail.

"Thank you, Hewie," she whispered as she wrapped her arms around him and hung by his neck. "Thank you."

She let go and crawled over towards Father. He was still face down and blood was everywhere. Tears flooded her eyes and flowed down her cheeks as she rolled Father onto his back. His eyes were half open and no light flickered in them. No breath came from him. No beat would ever return to his heart, and she felt as if her world was over. Father was no longer here. Carver wasn't here either. Nor Bethany.

All she had was Hewie and Mother. Mother wasn't going to be all here though when she found out Father was gone. It was just her, and it was going to be only her for a while.

* * *

><p>The days after Father's death blurred together to her, but one thing did stick out during that time. A service was held for him by the Revered Mother even though she wasn't supposed to hold one for apostates.<p>

When she asked the Revered Mother about this she simply replied, "Malcolm may have been an apostate, but he was much, much more than that. He was a good man with a noble heart that caused him to help a great many people even if he gained little to nothing from it," The Revered Mother shook her head slightly. "Men like that are hard to find these days, and when you do find them they deserve the best one can offer them when they pass on. The best I can offer is a proper service, and he will not be denied that no matter how much the templars complain about it."

She was shell shocked at the Revered Mother's answer. Surely a woman of the Chantry would not have such a cool and understanding head when it comes to apostates. The Chantry always said the worst about apostates and branded them as maleficarum even if the title was baseless.

The Revered Mother had seen her shock and tried to put her mind at ease, "Did you think I would hate all apostates?" she laughed a little. "Apostates may not follow the rules of the Chantry, but that doesn't mean they are going against The Will of the Maker."

Her heavy heart became lighter for a few beats, "Thank you," she whispered before returning back to the villagers and friends that attended Father's service.

The villagers of Lothering used to comment on how bad it was for them to live away from the village. Now they gossiped about how Mother and her remaining daughter were coping.

Mother was doing well for a fresh widow. She plastered on a fake smile with hollow eyes. She ate and did everything that needed to be done like everything was normal, but the sorrow and pain never stopped being reflected in her eyes. They say that the eyes are the windows to the soul, and Mother's eyes never had any light in them since Father died. Even after a few weeks something that could have resembled light had yet to be seen in her eyes by anyone, which they found curious. People forget sometimes that it takes time for a broken heart to heal.

The remaining daughter in the house was considered to be coping much better by people on the outside because they only heard news from Mother, but that wasn't true. Mother had lied to protect her daughter.

The truth was that she wasn't eating that much. She barely focused on anything that needed being done. She sat in Father's study for hours upon hours just staring at the books that they had read and practiced from. She barely spoke, and when she did speak, it was usually in Tevinter, a language that was cold and harsh. It was a language she had hated learning, and the last thing Father had been able to teach her. Her dreams in the Fade were plagued by something worse than any demons: memories. Every night she relived what had happened on the snowy day after she had finished chopping the wood. Every night she woke up screaming and sobbing uncontrollably with Mother's arms around her and Hewie's head resting on her legs as they attempted to comfort her. She had been extremely close to her Father, and that made things all the harder. That was why she couldn't bring herself to open the large object that had been wrapped in the white cloth Father had wanted her to hide from the templars. Before she would go to bed and be plagued by memories, she would take out the clothed object from its hiding place and set it on her lap, starting at it with glazed eyes, not daring to look and see what it was.

Three weeks had passed since Father's death, and Carver and Bethany had finally come home. Both of them couldn't believe what had happened and tried questioning their sister to get every little detail on what had happened, but they failed. She would only reply in soft, short answers that would barely answer the questions.

After a day of this, Bethany finally got fed up and began screaming at her older sister. "You selfish bitch! We have every right to know how Father died and you keep it to yourself! You care only about how it has hurt you, but it is killing me not knowing the entire story!" Bethany was in her sister's face now. "You obviously didn't care about him, or else you would have saved him! Even if you couldn't save him, you'd at least know that he'd want his _entire_ family to know how he died and tell them! But you aren't because all you see is yourself!"

Bethany was expecting someone to snap, either her sister or Mother. She wasn't expecting Carver to, though. None of them were.

Within seconds of the end of Bethany's little speak, Caver had forced her up against a wall and was staring at her with fury written on his face and in his eyes. Through tightly clenched teeth he said, "Don't you ever talk to her like that again! If you hadn't went and signed up for the army none of this would have happened! The only reason I joined was to keep you alive and put Mother and Father's mind at ease! If we had been here Father wouldn't have needed to go to Lothering where the templars found him out! If anything it was you who killed him! It was your actions that brought his death!"

He let Bethany fall to the ground, tears streaking from her eyes. Carver was breathing hard. Never in all his life had he been so angry. He was usually the voice of peace and was never angry, but Bethany's selfishness had finally gotten to him.

The youngest was crying on the floor; the oldest, trying not to lose the rest of his cool. As for the middle child, she stood up from where she had been seated and moved towards Carver, resting a hand lightly on his arm before ascending up the stairs that led to her room.

Once there she quickly dressed in her nightgown and retrieved the clothed object from her hiding place. Every night she would pull it out and look at it, but had never opened it...until today, that is.

With trembling hands she slowly peeled away the cloth to reveal a great big book that was bound in leather and had many symbols of different types of enchantments burned into it. She opened the book to the first page, the title page. Two words were printed on it. _"Malcolm Hawke."_ It was in Father's handwriting, and as she turned the page, her heart leapt into her throat.

"_My magic will serve that which is best in me, not which is most base.  
>This grimoire was started by a Hawke and will pass down through my lineage to those who have been given my curse of magic."<em>

That was the first paragraph on the page, and it shocked her. She never knew he felt so strongly against magic. The writing was old, however, and as her eyes moved down the page she found herself reading something that had only recently been added.

"_To my daughter,  
>I hope that my grimoire will guide you along your path and enable you to travel it safely. Remember what I have taught you, and never let yourself be led astray. You are strong and wise, and though you may always be that little girl who accidentally froze our entire barn under a thick sheet of ice in my eyes, know that I am proud of the woman you have become. My dear Alexandria, do not hate what you are, and do not fear it. Live your life as a free woman and mage without hesitation. Be proud of who you are. Be proud that you are a Hawke.<br>Love,  
>Father"<em>

Tears graced Alexandria's eyes as she finished reading the last words from Father. _I will do you proud, Papa,_ she vowed silently to herself. _I promise that and to live as you wanted me to live. As a free and proud mage._


	2. Chapter 2

**Seaing Differently**

Another wave reached the deck and Alexandria shivered again as the cold sea water reached her as well, its small veins of salty water snaking across her clothes and bare skin along with the drops that danced and slid down from where they had landed. She was amazed at how something so simple as the cold could bring back memories that had been buried long ago.

_I haven't gone back to the day Father died in years,_ she thought sadly as the boat rocked below her feet. _I wonder if he'd have done anything different than us. I wonder if he'd have been able to get us all here safely._

* * *

><p>"Alex, behind us!" Bethany cried as the darkspawn were starting to fence them in.<p>

Alexandria said nothing, but with a small flick of her wrist and a diminutive amount of willpower, a wall of fire incinerated the flanking darkspawn and prevented anymore from coming closer.

Carver and Bethany were slowly advancing on the darkspawn that were now trying to force them back into the flames Alexandria had conjured. They were slowly making some headway with the darkspawn. Their numbers were getting smaller and smaller.

Bethany was a damn good rogue. She could disappear in the smallest shadows and had an incredibly annoying knack of reappearing in the worst places possible. She was quick, stealthy, and dangerous. It was everything she loved since she was never one for a straight-up fight. She preferred to dodge and dance out of the way before she used her opponents own moves and skill against them. It was her way and it kept her from harm most of the time. Her selfishness is also still there, buried deep beneath the sarcasm and smart remarks she fires off easily. Ostagar changed her. It made her lose what little innocence she had left. Now she was just a hardened rogue that used cunning and stealth to get what she wanted. That's all she ever cared to be

Her skill was what Bethany had used to work her way around and behind the darkspawn, allowing her to force them towards Carver and Alexandria who were more than ready to take care of them.

Carver's mighty sword gleamed in the sun, its blade stained with the blood of his enemies as he sliced through the darkspawn that got too close. His earth-shattering blows shook the nearby darkspawn as he swung it with terrifying ferocity; a ferocity that not only decimated those against him, but also caused him to be blind to the wounds he received; however, it is most likely that he just did not care to pay them any attention. Carver had suffered many deadly wounds at Ostagar; some of which had almost killed him, but he does nothing to keep out of harm's way. He's a protector, and he is willing to throw himself at danger if it means keeping someone else safe. This is where Alexandria comes in to play.

For three years while Bethany and Carver were in the army, Alexandria had spent the entire time studying Father's grimoire. She had easily surpassed his strength and ingenuity in magic, though she would never admit it. Her healing was unparalleled, and her elemental and primal spells were more powerful than any mage in all of Fereldan, blood mage or no. She was dangerous, and she knew it. That's how she kept herself in check. Knowing you are too powerful is what will keep you from using all your potential. It keeps you from losing control, and hurting or killing someone unintentionally.

"Carver, move!" Alexandria yelled as two darkspawn had come around to his left side and were getting ready to attack him simultaneously.

Carver moved to the right quickly and without hesitation, and Alexandria cast Winters Grasp at the two darkspawn that had threatened Carver.

Ice erupted between the two darkspawn, freezing them under thick layers of ice that jutted out from them in some places. Alexandria's spell had not just frozen the two she was aiming for, she had also gotten three other darkspawn that were in close enough proximity to get caught in her spell.

Seeing that Bethany was being reckless as usual, Alexandria was forced to ignore the enemies she had already engaged and she flicked her staff over towards Bethany's direction. A bolt of spirit energy sprang to life with Alexandria's will and was sent hurtling through a darkspawn that was getting ready to attack from the rocks above her. It crashed against the rocks it was on before it landed on the ground.

Bethany didn't look over towards Alexandria. _I didn't ask for your help, Alex!_ she thought angrily before throwing herself at the remaining darkspawn.

Alexandria could feel the resentment coming from her twin sister and it made her flinch. She didn't know her sister was so devoted to doing things herself. She had been hoping that her sister's selfishness wouldn't have grown over the past three years she spent in the army, but apparently it had.

Drawing on just a fraction of her mana, Alexandria shattered the five frozen darkspawn with a telekinetic burst, sending shards of ice and frozen darkspawn careening towards the others that were behind them. The shrieks of pain and surprise rang around Carver, Bethany, and Alexandria as the other darkspawn were being ripped apart by the frozen projectiles. Three of the darkspawn that were hit fell to the ground, killed by the ice immediately. Three others that were hit were still screaming in pain up 'til the moment in which Carver cut them down.

"I believe that's all of them," Bethany said breathlessly as she jogged up towards Carver and Alexandria. She turned to her twin sister and with a wry smile she added, "Using their frozen comrades as weapons to kill them. That's cold."

"I couldn't do much else with you being everywhere at once," she responded calmly.

"It may be all of them for now, Bethany," Carver said, intervening so that a fight didn't start, "but let's not push our luck and keep our guard up just in case."

Alexandria gave a small nod in agreement before letting out a piercing whistle, signaling to Mother and Hewie that it was safe for them to come out.

They had been hiding in a small alcove between two huge boulders that were on the side of the mountainous trail they were following. A steep hill rose behind them and provided room enough for the both of them, and cover on three sides. You couldn't get a better place to hide in the awful circumstance the Hawke family was in.

Hewie padded over towards Alexandria immediately and began sniffing her, looking for any wounds she may have received in the fight he was not allowed to partake in. Hewie, or Mabari's in general, are well known for their loyalty and for their extreme pickiness when it comes to the condition their owners are in. One little scratch was all it took to get a long lecture full of barks, growls, and whimpers from them.

Satisfied and convinced that Alexandria was unharmed, Hewie sat beside her, keeping a watchful eye out for anymore darkspawn that may come.

"Are you alright, Mother?" Alexandria asked once she had caught up to them.

"Yes, but..." Mother's voice cracked, "everything your father and I built is gone. We have nothing left."

"We have our memories, Mother, that's enough," Alexandria explained, trying to put Mother's mind at ease. "Father would care more about us living than protecting things of his that linked us to him and the past."

"You're...you're right. I'm sorry."

"There's nothing to apologize for, Mother," Carver piped in, "but we have to move. There could be more darkspawn on the way."

"Yes," Bethany rudely added, "and they won't wait on Alex and her desire to be sympathetic."

"You know that nickname doesn't get to me anymore," Alexandria said. "Why continue to use it?"

"Because _Alexandria_ is a mouthful, and_ Alex_ is much easier to say," Bethany snickered.

"At least it's not because you enjoy calling your sister by a boy's name anymore," Mother said quietly in her scolding voice.

"Well, it's that too, but that doesn't bother her as much as it used to so it's lost a bit of its charm," Bethany joked.

Carver sighed impatiently, "Let's keep moving."

"You lead, we'll follow," Alexandria said.

_I actually like Bethany's nickname for me,_ Alexandria thought as they started to move along the trial, smiling at the irony of it. _It may be a boy's name, but it least it can be said quickly. I probably shouldn't let Bethany know that I like it though. She might come up with something else to call me by._

The terrain was steep and uneven, making it difficult to traverse at times, especially for Mother, who was stumbling often. Alexandria stayed close to Mother, offering support and help when the going got rough; and Hewie stayed close to Alexandria, looking around their surroundings and keeping his senses peeled for danger while his mistress was preoccupied with helping Mother. Bethany was just a few steps behind Carver, who was just making it to the top of the hill and leading at a breakneck pace. Soon Carver and Bethany disappeared on the other side of the hill, descending down the other side of it. This left Mother, Alexandria, and Hewie on their own for the most part.

"Come on, Mother," Alexandria said, helping Mother stay on her feet as she slipped and almost fell once more. "We're almost at the top. Then it's downhill for a little bit."

"I don't know if that'll help me," Mother laughed breathlessly, smiling. "I might slip and stumble along a whole lot worse than I am now."

"Well, there's only one way to find out if that's going to happen," Alexandria encouraged, offering a smile.

Mother laughed a bit more at what her daughter had said, which was quite surprising. This was a terrible day. They were running for their lives with monsters jumping out at every turn, trying to kill them, yet her own daughter was able to look past that and get others to laugh and to smile. It was a gift that she had inherited from her father, and Mother thought happily about that with sweet sorrow, her smile shrinking in size. _She's a lot like you, Malcolm,_ Mother thought, talking to her husband and knowing that he could hear her. _She has that "Mage Pride" you often used to talk about, and has a way of making people smile even in the worst of times. If you could see her now, I know you'd be proud of her and what she's become._

"Talking to Father?" Alexandria asked, startling Mother.

"Yes. How did you know?" Mother said, finally gaining proper footing and making it up the rest of the hill with her daughter.

"You had that glazed over look in your eyes," Alexandria answered. "Don't worry; I still talk to him, too. Now..." she sighed, "where did Carver and Beth go?"

That's when Mother and Alexandria heard the clanging of metal on metal and the cries of battle drifting from in front of them. Carver and Bethany must have run into more darkspawn and had engaged them already, not remembering that they had a mage sister that could obliterate their foes with one single wave of her hand as long as they didn't get in her way.

"Hewie, stay here and guard Mother," Alexandria said, grabbing the staff off of her back. "Mother, follow me down the hill a bit, but stay away from the battle." With the last of her words said, Alexandria rushed down the rest of the hill to stand at her brother and sister's side and make sure that neither of them got terribly hurt.

Once over the crest of the hill and at the base, Alexandria had to follow the trail as it curved left before she found her brother and sister. They were fighting ten or so darkspawn, but someone else was with them. Two someone's actually. One was a red-haired woman who was shaped for battle, and when Alexandria took in her weaponry, her heart sank. The woman carried a shield that held the crest of the templars. The other one, a man, was dressed in the templars uniform and fear shook Alexandria, but she knew she had to help her brother and sister.

_Could this day get any worse?_ Alexandria asked herself rhetorically before running closer towards the fight. The man in the templars' uniform was collapsed on a nearby pile of rocks. Alexandria could sense his wounds before she could see them, and although the healer in her was telling her to heal this man's wounds, her brother and sister were more important than some random templar that didn't know how to save his own skin. The woman with the shield was holding her own against the darkspawn, though fatigue hindered her movements just enough to drag out the time it took her to kill the darkspawn she was fighting. Carver and Bethany were staying close together and doing their best to kill all the darkspawn quickly, no doubt they were trying to end this fight before Alexandria got there and tried to help. Even after three years they were still trying to protect her from the templars.

Alexandria let out a hissy breath of annoyance. She could kill all these darkspawn easily, yet Carver and Bethany were throwing themselves recklessly at the darkspawn so that she wouldn't have to show who she was in front of a templar. _I will not stand by and watch Carver and Beth get cut to ribbons simply because of some templar,_ she thought angrily as two spells formed in her mind. One was an elemental barrier that she would cast on those in the fight, including the templar. The other one was a fireball she would use to burn the darkspawn to ashes. _I will kill all these darkspawn with magic, and damn the consequences!_ With that angry thought in her head, Alexandria released the spells and brought form to them with her mana.

White barriers weaved around Carver, Bethany, the woman with the red hair, and the templar as the fireball crashed in the center of the darkspawn. Flames danced on the ground and on those that were not protected by the barriers, licking flesh and rock with their burning tongues. The cries of pain from those that had been caught in the fiery hell that Alexandria had created echoed off of the steep, mountainous wall that formed one side of the trail and dispersed into the canyon that could be seen on the other side as they died.

"Are you insane!" came a hissed question. Alexandria looked back to see Mother's accusing eyes. She had followed Alexandria down the hill and hadn't stayed back away from the fight as she had been told by her daughter.

Hewie was also looking at her accusingly. His head was cocked to one side, and his ears were raised in a questioning manner. "Why did you do that?" was the question that could be seen reflected in his eyes, and was being voiced by his position.

Alexandria's response was not one of words, but of action. She simply moved her staff into the position on her back it had been before the fight and walked over to where Carver and Bethany stood. Carver had the same accusing look in his eyes as Alexandria got closer with Mother and Hewie in tow. Bethany had her backed turned to them, so Alexandria had no way of knowing what her reaction was.

"Apostate! Keep back!" cried the templar as Alexandria got closer, but she ignored him and took her place by her brother's side who hadn't ignored what the templar had said and tightened his grip on his unsheathed sword. The templar shuffled in place nervously.

"Well, Alex, it certainly looks like the Maker loves you," Bethany teased harshly. "First darkspawn, and now you've got a templar chasing you."

"Correction," Alexandria said coolly, "he is not chasing me...yet. He is simply glaring at me."

"Same difference in my books," came her sister's sharp reply.

"Perhaps you should read more books then," Alexandria muttered before stepping back a few paces, only to have her hand licked by Hewie, who then walked in front of Alexandria and began growling at the templar. "Easy, Hewie," she said. "He won't hurt me, boy." Alexandria then looked sweetly at the templar. "Right?"

The templar hesitated before answering, "The darkspawn are clear in their intent...but apostates..." he let the word hang in the air, and a chill ran down Alexandria's spine at that hateful word. "The Order dictates," he said forcefully, gaining new conviction.

"She saved our lives though, dear," the red-haired woman said. "The Maker understands."

"I..." the templar stuttered, addressing the red-haired woman, "I guess you're right, love." Then he turned and looked at Alexandria. "You and I have an accord, for now, because of the greater danger that surrounds us."

"Thank you," Alexandria said. "I could ask no more, or expect more, from a templar." There was a tinge of bitterness in her words, along with an insult that was hiding in plain sight. Carver coughed to let her know that, that was a little too close.

"My name is Aveline Vallen, and this is my husband, Wesley," the red-haired woman turned and faced Carver, who still had a tight grip on his sword. Raising an eyebrow and making it clear that she had seen him get ready to cut Wesley down, she said "I suggest we hate each other later."

"Agreed," Carver said before glaring at Wesley. "Know that I stand with Alex, though, templar." The last word he said was actually spat out, and all the malice Carver could muster was dripping from that one word, causing Wesley to shrink back just enough to know his place.

Alexandria never hated templars, not even for what they did to Father. She pitied them and their blindness to the fact that not all mages should be feared and locked up. Because of her kind-hearted nature, Alexandria would only get annoyed with the templars. This made Carver decide to hate them for her.

"We'll travel with you for the moment, if you don't mind," Aveline said. "North is cut off though. We barely escaped the main body of the horde."

"Then we should go south," Alexandria suggested.

"Oh, yes!" Bethany said with bitter sarcasm. "Heading for the Wilds is such a brilliant plan, Alex!"

"We'll be fine," Alexandria replied, cutting off Bethany's cruel sarcasm. "Will you be okay, though?" she continued, directing her words towards Wesley.

"My sword arm is gone," Wesley answered cautiously. "I don't believe even healing magic would fix it."

"Would you like for me to relieve you of your wound's pain then?"

"No," Aveline butted in, "you don't need to do that. It'll serve him as a reminder for his stupidity."

"Very well then," Alexandria chuckled, offering one of her more simple smiles. "Shall we continue on this lovely walk towards the Korcari Wilds?"

"You have a strange sense of lovely," Aveline breathed in disbelief.

"You get used to it," Carver said before continuing down the trail, taking the lead.

Aveline and her husband followed in suite with Bethany behind them. Mother, however, did not set out after them immediately. She stood still for a moment, casting a wayward glance out across the canyon. You could see smoke on the horizon caused by the fires the darkspawn had started or their destruction had caused. Mother let out a loud sigh, one of regret and hopelessness before turning to follow the others.

Alexandria had waited for Mother a few paces ahead with Hewie by her side. When Mother began to follow the others, she continued to do so, but not at the quick pace Carver had set again. She slowed down just enough to stay a bit ahead of Mother, but was still close enough to help her out if she needed it.

Up ahead of them Carver and Bethany must have realized the pace they were trying to set wouldn't work since Mother and now Wesley wouldn't be able to keep up. Their strides shortened and their speed decreased as all of them formed into a group instead of a string of random people with quite a bit of distance between them.

Silence flowed around the group, only the occasional loud pant that came from Hewie's jaws and the soft clapping of boots on rock broke their quiet march. All of them were on high alert for darkspawn. The threat may not have shown themselves yet, but that didn't mean that they weren't there. Bethany wasn't the only one that could use shadows, and every now and then, you would get a group of darkspawn that weren't mindless husks that just charged blindly at anything that moved and wasn't tainted. Sometimes you would come across darkspawn that could think and strategize.

"So..." Aveline said, breaking the silence but not hers or anyone else's concentration or alertness. "You all know our names, but Wesley and I have only slightly picked up on what your names might be."

"Sorry for the lack introductions," Bethany _apologized_ coldly, "but we are kind of running for our lives and forgot the pleasantries."

"Do you have to be such an ass, _Bethany_?" Carver finally snapped, giving her a scolding glare over his shoulder while introducing her in a rather interesting manner. His question went unanswered, but an answer wasn't really expected by any of the Hawke family members. "The name's Carver, by the way," he finally said before the silence won dominion over the group again.

"Leandra," Mother piped in quietly.

"I'm Alexandria, or Alex for short," Alex said, giving Aveline a polite nod as she and Mother came to walk beside her.

"Alex...?" Aveline asked with a raised eyebrow. "Isn't that a man's name?"

"A soldier...?" Alex said in the same tone and with the same facial expression as she jokingly mocked Aveline. "Isn't that a man's job?"

Aveline laughed quietly and would have responded with something like "touché," but the gurgling and snarling of approaching darkspawn cut off any further conversation.

"More of them?" Mother breathed, her voice tinted with pangs of panic.

"Sounds that way," Aveline replied in a voice smoothed over with knowledge of the skill she possessed. "Stick close to Wesley, madam, and stay behind me."

"Hewie!" Alexandria snapped breathily and her hound moved over by Mother, taking up his position as a guard over her once more. Wesley also moved over by Mother, and they backed themselves up against the steep wall of rock that continued to rise on the left of the trail. Aveline and Hewie stayed in front of them, offering protection and acting as shields against the enemies that were approaching.

"A simultaneous attack from both in front and behind us?" Carver mused as he and his siblings formed a tight circle while awaiting the first attack. "The bastards are getting smarter."

"Or we've gotten unlucky!" Bethany joked.

"I'll take care of the ones coming from behind us," Alex said coolly as she turned to face the direction they had come from.

"But you don't know how many will come from—" Carver tried to argue.

"I'll take care of them!" Alex interrupted, her voice carrying strength that silenced any further protest from her brother while reassuring him that she could take care of it.

Alex's staff was already gripped firmly in her hands at the same time as she had taken on her fighting stance. Magic flared on her fingertips and multiple destructive spells were on the edge of her conscience, ready to be released and given form by her will. Seconds ticked by and she could only hear the darkspawn as they approached but could not see them. The anticipation unnerved her slightly as her heart pounded thunderously in her chest. This was the first day she had ever seen these monsters alive, and the fourth time she has had to kill them. They smelled of death and not even the scariest stories told of them in Dane's Refuge, the tavern, did their horrific looks any justice or their inhumane acts of barbarism. These things were living, breathing nightmares, and Alex had never dreamed of meeting them in battle. Now that she was, she was close to freezing up with fear and would have, were it not for that fact that others' lives were counting on her.

_It's just like healing, _she told herself. _No matter how bad it looks it can always be fixed as long as you believe in your abilities and don't let what's happening go to your head. The same philosophy will work on these monsters, only I need to kill them, not fix them._

The first darkspawn showed itself in front of her as it rose up the hill. Having already picked up on their "charge as a group" tactic, Alex raised her hand and cast Chain Lightning. A bolt of electricity shot out from her hand and struck the darkspawn in the chest, causing its heart to explode. Two other darkspawn had followed behind the first, and the lightning danced from their comrade to them, causing the same quick death it had already enacted. As the bodies fell, four more darkspawn charged at Alex.

For a fleeting moment her breath was caught in her throat, but she regained her composure as she moved her staff in a half circle in front of her. That movement acted as a direction for the shape her ice barrier should take form as. The spell had been released quickly, and the ice jutted out of the ground directly in front of her four attackers. All of them were impaled on the frozen spikes, crimson blood staining and dripping down the blue ice.

Carver and Bethany were having similar ease in taking care of the darkspawn that had attacked from in front of the group. Bethany was able to take out one enemy at a time quickly with her fatal daggers as Carver's mighty sword distracted and decimated multiple enemies at one time. They were fighting side by side, their movements coinciding with one another in a rhythm they picked up from their training in the army.

"Makes things much easier," Bethany said to Carver breathlessly as she ducked under a darkspawn's blade that swung at her, "now that we don't have to worry about Alex." Bethany caught the next swing of her enemy's sword with her dagger before bringing her other one up in a deadly arc that sliced through the darkspawn. She kicked it backwards and it fell to the ground as she looked for the next darkspawn that would die by her blades.

"We still do," Carver responded as his fierce blows knocked several darkspawn on their backs. "She's never seen darkspawn before today," he grunted with effort as a deadly spin attack from him decapitated three darkspawn that had tried to close in on him, "and she isn't used to fighting them like we are." A few more swings of his greatsword and the darkspawn that were regaining their footing after being knocked down were shredded and no longer a threat.

"She seems to be holding her own," Bethany scoffed with displeasure. _Thanks for caring for me as much as you do Alex, brother, _she thought maliciously. _Oh wait, you don't! _A reckless swing from one of her daggers and she sliced off the head of the nearest darkspawn, giving another a chance to wound her as an she left a wide opening in her defenses.

The horrendous blade slipped through her leather armor easily, penetrating flesh and muscle in a matter of seconds. Bethany let out a gasp of both shock and pain as the sword was ripped from her body and the blood started to pour. A wicked smile twisted the already grotesque face of the darkspawn who had wounded Bethany as he raised his sword in a killing blow.

Bethany's heart pounded in her ears, her body froze as she watched in horror the movements of the darkspawn that would cause her demise.

"Bethany!" she heard her brother cry barely over the sound of her pounding heart. Carver had thrown the darkspawn he was facing back and was making his way towards his sister as quickly as he could, but he wouldn't make it in time.

He didn't need to.

A piercing whistle sounded further down the trail behind both Bethany and Carver. Carver didn't turn to see what had made the sound. All he cared about was reaching Bethany. The darkspawn, however, including the one who was about to kill a Hawke, turned and looked in the direction the whistle had come from.

It was Alex. Her long, luscious black hair was billowing out behind her, having fallen out of the bow she kept it up in; her face, which was normally kind and soft, was now twisted into a fierce snarl full of determination and hatred; and in one fluid movement she calmly raised her hand, channeling her energy to it before she held out her palm to the darkspawn.

It was a simple spell one that was the first one she had learned, but her strength and ingenuity made into something far worse than what it was originally. A column of fire leapt off her fingertips and raced towards the darkspawn. It snaked its way around Carver and Bethany, leaving them untouched while it turned all the darkspawn to ash as soon as the fire came in contact with them.

Carver had frozen to the spot as soon as he saw the flames. Bethany had sunk to the ground, her wound sapping her of strength already. Both had a flicker of fear in their eyes at the terrible force Alex could exert within a moment's notice. They had never seen the full extent of Alex's power when she let loose. They still hadn't, but that was unknown to them.

When Alex ended the spell, Carver was no longer stuck to the spot. He ran to Bethany, skidding onto his knees and holding her up. He tried his best at placing pressure on the wound. A soft hand on his shoulder told him that he didn't need to hurry.

"Leave it to you," Alex teased, "to be the only one of us to get hurt." Her hands, which had originally been lit up with fire, now pulsed with an unworldly blue light. She calmly moved Carver's hands away from the wound. Alex's healing magic quickly went to work, knitting flesh, muscle, and blood vessels back together. The pain that racked Bethany's body was quickly washed away, and a look of tranquility was reflected upon her face. Alex, however, was in pain, though not from any wound of hers. Healing always connected you to the person you were trying to fix, and not only did Alex feel a bit of the pain given off from Bethany's wound, her hands were also burning with the cold healing magic.

"There," Alex finally said, the soft glow of magic fading from her features, "all better."

"About time," Bethany growled as she rose abruptly to her feet, nearly knocking Alex off balance while she was still kneeling on the ground. "Could you take any longer?"

"I could have let you bleed out and die," Alex replied shrilly, rising to her feet slowly, "but I didn't. A little thanks would be welcome."

"Then look for it elsewhere," Bethany bit back, "because you'll find none from me."

"Of course," Alex whispered harshly before turning to her brother. "I didn't know you could move that fast, Carver," she said playfully.

"And I didn't know you could be so deadly," he replied, lightly, though a tinge of curiosity hung on his words. He never thought in all his life that Alex could be so strong.

"You pick up a few things when working on a farm," Alex said slyly with a wink.

Carver merely chuckled at what his sister said before sheathing his sword. "We should continue to press forward and make our way up that hill," he said, nodding in the direction he was talking about. "If we're lucky we'll be able to see a non-darkspawn filled trail leading to the Wilds."

"Brother, brother, brother..." Bethany sighed mockingly. "When have we ever been lucky?"

"I can think of a couple of times I was lucky."

"Oh, really?" Bethany asked, mocking tone continuing to envelope her words. "Do you mind sharing?"

"Well," Carver said, his words gilded with thought, "there were a couple of times where I wasn't stuck on patrol with you."

"Oh! Good one, Carver!" Alex exclaimed, moving forward along the trail with her trusty Mabari matching her stride.

Bethany grumbled something inaudible, but Alex had already figured out that it was nothing nice towards her or her brother. Pity flowed from Alex to her sister for the fact that Carver and her treated her this way. They were family yet not even when there was a major crisis could the three of them all get along with one another. _It's a shame that it has gotten this way,_ Alex thought to herself as she headed for the hill Carver had mentioned.

Death's silence rose up around the Hawkes and Vallens as they continued down the path, heading from destruction towards destruction.

* * *

><p>"How are you holding up, Sis?" Carver asked as he came to stand next to Alex.<p>

"Well, it took a bit for me to get my sea legs, but I'm holding myself up just fine now," was her kind response. Alex was still staring out at the sea, watching the rolling waves that were occasionally capped with white.

"That wasn't what I..." Carver began to say, but when Alex finally turned to face him, he stopped. Alex was smiling, and it wasn't any plain, old smile, it was her innocent smile. The one that didn't show any teeth and was accompanied with raised eyebrows. A smile that often came out whenever Alex was teasing or being mischievous.

Carver recognized the mischief sparkling in his sister's eyes and couldn't help but laugh. "Always have to make everyone laugh or smile, don't you?"

"I'd prefer to have you laugh at my lame jokes than moping around all the time. I don't know if you've realized this," she continued, "but you look terrible when you're moping." Alex placed her hands on her hips and leaned forward into her brother's face. "How are you going to pick up a girl looking like that?" she asked teasingly.

"I'm pretty sure that no one is looking at me for something like that," Carver replied.

"I don't know," Alex continued to tease her brother. "I've seen many a sideways glance cast in your direction by the crew."

"I didn't think there were any women on this ship's crew..."

"There're not," Alex said, smirking as she talked, "but that doesn't mean..."

"No, Alex," Carver interrupted, "I am not interested in men."

"Yet."

"There's no winning when it comes to arguments with you, so I give up," Carver exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air in mock frustration.

"But this argument hasn't even started," his sister pouted, smirk still plastered on her face.

"And I don't really like where it's going."

"Bah! You're no fun anymore, you know that?" Alex complained, playfully.

"Only because I don't want to be," Carver answered with a smile. "If you chose a less...awkward topic to argue about, I would enjoy arguing about it." As soon as Carver said the words his thoughts immediately went to something he had been purposefully trying to get himself to ignore.

_Whose fault was it? _he asked to the wind, not expecting an answer. Little did he know that his little sister was asking herself the very same question.

* * *

><p>"Why is it so damn difficult to climb up this stupid hill!" Bethany cried as soon as darkspawn reinforcements started to pour from the trail behind them.<p>

"Because it hates you," was Alex's immediate response to her twin sister's unnecessary question. Alex was getting a little annoyed with Bethany, and even though she hated to think badly of her sister, Bethany was starting to wear on her a bit. _How on earth did Carver put up with you all that time you two spent in the army?_

Alex, who usually attacked foes from a bit of a distance, now had some darkspawn blood staining her light blue robes. Greater amounts of darkspawn had forced her to use her staff in defense and offense when her enemies managed to get close to her, and she was now thankful that Carver and Bethany had taken the time when they were younger to show her how to fight without magic and just a staff.

"Stop bickering and fight!" Carver snapped before he rushed down to face the approaching darkspawn with renewed vigor in his step as Alex cast Rejuvenation.

The sound of metal on metal was deafening, and once again Alex soon found herself in close quarters with darkspawn. There were three of them this time. Blocks were made with her staff as she caught their swords and knocked them back away from her. Her hands throbbed from holding her staff so tightly and from the vibrations that were absorbed by them when metal met the wood of her staff. Finally, she managed to catch one of them off guard, slicing through its flesh with the blade part of her staff. The other two rushed her, and Alex quickly shot off a wave of telekinetic energy, stunning the two darkspawn.

Framing another spell in her mind, Alex was about to cast about to cast one that would have two spikes of ice rise from the ground with great force directly underneath both of the darkspawn that were still stunned. Her magic was unneeded though, since Aveline charged the darkspawn, impaling one on her sword before she slid the dead darkspawn off her sword and cut off the head of the other.

"Thanks for that," Alex said breathlessly.

"Don't mention it," Aveline replied in the same breathless tone. The two women turned and prepared for more enemies to replace the ones they had killed, but no more came.

Aveline and Alex relaxed in their stance, lines of fatigue graced both of their faces; but their weapons remained out, ready for anything that might come their way. Carver and Bethany were faring no better and kept their weapons out as well.

The group quickly got back together with Mother and Wesley in the center of the circle. Hewie padded softly beside Alex, and every now and then she would reach down and scratch behind his ears or pet his soft fur for reassurance and strength. Carver and Bethany had taken the lead and were slowly making their way up the hill, finally. This time they weren't interrupted by darkspawn, and they were all thankful for that.

"I still can't believe that there was an emissary with those darkspawn this time," Bethany said at last, breaking the silence, stopping for a moment which also caused everyone to follow suit.

"Emissary?" Alex asked. She didn't know the different types of darkspawn and figured they were all the same.

"The one that was firing off spells..." Bethany explained as if she were talking to a little kid.

"If those were spells," Alex said, half laughing at what she was about to say, "then I'm a templar."

"Yeah, yeah, we all know you are so much more powerful than it was, but you asked and I told," her twin sister said coldly. "Either way, what I was getting at was that I can't believe we're so unlucky."

"Actually, now that I think about it, I believe you are the bad luck, Bethany," Carver interrupted. "Whenever I was on patrol with you...boom! Something bad would happen. If I was with anyone else, everything went smoothly with nothing bad on the side."

"I might have to agree myself," Aveline joined in, taking Carver's side. "When it was just Wesley and I on our own, we barely ran into any stragglers; but as soon as you came close to us, we were overwhelmed to the point where we needed help in order to survive."

"Shut up..." Bethany grumbled, clearly believing what they were saying.

"So now that we have concluded that Bethany's the bad luck, shall we continue up this hill? I would rather us continue on than stand here and debate until more darkspawn come," Alex finally concluded, driving everyone's attention back to fleeing the darkspawn.

"Yes, we should move rather quickly towards the Wilds now before the darkspawn gain on us," Aveline agreed.

The hill was set at a pleasant incline, not too steep. Everyone was walking at a rather quick pace that was slow enough for Mother and Wesley to keep up at, yet fast enough for them to be comfortable about the distance they were putting between them and the darkspawn.

No sounds could be heard save for their footfalls. The smoke and stench of death had scared away all the birds, robbing the air of their sweet, soft melodies. All the animals had fled the area due to the sounds of battle. The world around seemed robbed of life, and the ever-present threat of monsters coming out of the shadows grew on their minds and tainted their hope. It seemed to all of them that there was little chance of escape. Alex, was fidgeting with her robes, trying to keep her hands occupied so that no one would see them shaking with the fear that was in her heart. Bethany and Mother stayed silent so that no one could hear the worry that was on their minds. Carver led on, trying to give the others encouragement while he even he doubted the odds of them surviving. Aveline stayed close to her husband, worried for his safety as he was for hers. Hewie was the only one that didn't show any signs of deteriorating spirit. He would prance in circles around the group, being mindful that he needed to be silent while keeping his playful nature.

"Would you look at that?" Alex breathed out in unison with Aveline –"Holy shit! I'm regretting seeing this,"

"You can pretty much see the black stain of their taint on the earth," Alex whispered in disbelief.

"No, that's not taint, that's darkspawn forcers," Carver corrected quietly.

"Well, there's no point in crying about it. We can't do anything to change it so—" Bethany cut herself off mid-sentence and turned towards the south, the direction they should be heading.

Her silence was welcome but also so unnatural that it caught the attention of her brother and sister. "Bethany...?" Carver called out to her softly.

"Sh-Shhh!" Bethany hissed.

Bethany listened closely to the sound that she could have sworn she had heard. It had been so faint before that she just barely heard it over what she was saying. She stood in silence, the others following her example and remaining quiet as well. It didn't come again. Nothing could be heard, and Bethany breathed a sigh of relief. "It must have been the wind," she told the others, smiling while turning back to face them.

"Why?" Alex asked. "What would it have been?"

"Something far, far worse than the wind."

"Well, that's a given, Beth," Alex laughed. Her laughter stopped though, when the soft thud of running feet could be heard and felt through the ground.

Carver's and Bethany's eyes opened wide with surprise and fear. They knew what that sound was and what terrors it brought with it.

"It was supposed to be just the wind! Didn't you hear me!" Bethany cried in frustration towards the sky, just as the ogre appeared over the rise of the hill they were on.

The thing stopped as soon as it spotted the group, letting out a fierce roar of triumph as it slammed its fists on the grounds for intimidation. It stared at those in the group for a short time, its beady black eyes squinting at them. It was a standoff between the ogre and everyone else. Bethany, Aveline, and Carver had already drawn their weapons and were ready for its first attack. Hewie stood growling and glaring at the ogre but didn't dare leave his mistress's side while Wesley had moved away and Mother stood out in the open, unable to figure out where to go. Alex was frozen to the spot. She had never seen such a horrible enemy as the ogre, but even being new to seeing darkspawn, she could conclude that the thing was more stupid than the others. It was all brawn and no brain.

"Shit! Everyone move!" Carver cried as he fled to one side of the hill, moving out of the path the ogre had chosen to go in its charge.

Bethany, Aveline, and Mother moved to the left out of its way; Carver, Alex, Hewie, and Wesley, to the right. They formed a corridor as the ogre ran to the opposite side of the hill before crashing into rock, its horns chipping off pieces of the stone and sending them whizzing through the air. The ogre let out what could be classified as a howl of frustration as it looked frantically for those it was charging. Its eyes finally settled on Mother, and its feet shook the earth as its weight bared down on its limbs.

Aveline quickly ran away from its line of sight with Bethany on her heels...but something stopped her. A fire which had almost gone out now burned with a passion that lit up her eyes. Tightening her grip on her daggers, Bethany changed directions and ran towards Mother and the ogre, determination making every step that much faster. "In your name, Father!" she cried as she shoved mother back out of the way of the ogre's grasp, slicing at its opened hand.

A roar of pain echoed across the hill before the ogre reached out and snatched Bethany off the ground. Bethany let out a soft cry as her breath was forced from her due to the tight grip of the ogre.

"Bethany, no!" Alex screamed.

Bethany let out a gasp in surprise at the despair in her sister's words as the ogre raised her high to smash her into the ground below. Then time seemed to have no meaning. It was like everything had frozen, and the twin sisters' eyes met for the last time. This time there was no anger, no spite, but a connection between them, which they had thought severed, reawakened within them. A connection they had not shared with each other since they were little girls.

_No, don't go!_ Alex said through the connection, her words dripping like hot tears. _What am I to do without you? You are the strength, remember?_

_Aye, and you're the smarts, right?_ Bethany would never get rid of her sarcasm, but it was kinder now, softer. _You'll be fine on your own now, I think. You've proven you know how to get things done that aren't just puzzles._

_But I need you, _Alex argued. _Twins are never whole without one another just like Father said. You can't go!_

_Except you've learned to live without me already, _Bethany responded, her own words now with an edge of sadness. _You don't need my strength any more. You have your own, and it's a great deal stronger than what I could ever have given you._

_That's not true!_

_Good bye, Alex-Alexandria. Know that I go to Father, and that I l-...I'll see you around._

Their conversation had seemed to take ages to be said, but in truth it had only been seconds. When Bethany's words were finished being sent through the twins' mental link, she was already bloody and growing cold. She was already dead.

~.0.~

"Dreams shatter,  
>Judgment's clouded,<br>Visions of the future die.

Your honor is gone,  
>Your courage is now fear,<br>Nothing is all that awaits you.

The world is against you,  
>It burns all around you,<br>What hope do you truly have?" –excerpt from "Fate" on deviantART.

* * *

><p>Little Author's note here: a really good artist who posts on deviantART has a character for "The Merry Mabari" named raven who looks a lot like how I picture Alex, save for the fact that her eyes are a little blue-er than what I said in the first chapter. Check it out here - gallery32548935#/d48ppkw I don't own anything she has posted and Raven is completely 100% her character. Also you should check out the other stuff she's got in her gallery. It's really quite amazing.

Furthermore, I know it has taken a very long time posting anything and I greatly apologize for it. I was having difficulty writing and the break has actually cleared my mind quite a bit so I will hopefully be posting at a normal(ish) schedule.


	3. Chapter 3

**Fly Away**

"Well, well...What have we here?"

It was a dragon, an old hag, and someone—something—that had saved their lives. That didn't mean there was any trust shared between them, however. More like curiosity and fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of what it might do, and fear of the obvious fact that they couldn't stop her.

"Stop right there," Carver growled out fiercely as he rose his sword towards the unknown, acting upon on the urge to be a guardian for his sister rather than courage.

"If you really think that metal toy of yours could actually stop me, I would love to see you try and would entertain your efforts...maybe," the hag cackled.

Carver stood his ground, though a sense of uneasiness flooded through his limbs along with a sense of dread. He had blocked all emotion that would affect his ability to survive and make sure everyone else would survive. Sadness, anger, happiness (though there was no reason for that emotion to be creeping up), all of those were blocked by being cut off at the source, his heart. It was sealed away and encased in steel so as to stay intact after the loss of his sister. However, this _thing_ had brought up the worst emotions that he could possibly be feeling at the moment, and he had no way of shaking them from his being.

Alex felt her brother's dread and tightened her grip on her staff, pain flaring from her hand where Hewie had bitten her to get his mistress moving after Bethany died. She had been frozen to where she stood when the ogre reached down for Bethany and would have remained in that spot even when the ogre attacked once more and when more darkspawn came to aid the ogre. Hewie, her faithful and loving Mabari, was the only reason she finally fought for her life now that half of it was gone.

Mother was cradling Bethany, having lost all interest in the matters of the living now that her little girl was dead. She had quickly cast the blame onto Carver, who had no intention of removing it, and her tears continued to spill even as the darkspawn had surrounded them. With the appearance of this new and far more powerful enemy, she still hadn't stirred. Nothing would wake her from the sorrows of today. It was something that only time could heal.

Wesley and Aveline were over by a ridge further behind the group. Wesley had collapsed possibly due to his wounds, or he was just exhausted to the point of no longer being able to carry on. Aveline kneeled beside him, fearful of this strange weakness he now had, but refusing to believe that it couldn't be solved with rest and a proper meal.

"Wh-What do you want?" Alex stuttered quietly, not trusting her voice to carry out the words.

"What do _I_ want?" the hag repeated mockingly. "Why, my dear child, there are a great many things that I want, the most recent being that I wanted to know who could have possibly accomplished the amazing feat of slaying an ogre." The hag's eyes narrowed in a knowing sneer as she gazed at Alex, who shuffled nervously under her gaze. "And now that my curiosity is sated there is nothing I want from you, for the moment. But take heart. I didn't save your lives simply to kill you, or eat you."

"You certainly know how to dance around questions while making it sound as if you answered them," Alex replied blankly.

The hag laughed wickedly, "You I like. So full of wisdom and also having a keen eye. It's something rare for someone like you."

"If you know all about 'someone like me,' then will you grant me the pleasure of knowing what someone like you is?"

"Alex, are you stupid?" Carver hissed over to her sister. "This is a dangerous game that shouldn't be played!"

The hag couldn't hear a word that was said between brother and sister and proceeded to answer Alex's question. "I'm—"

"I'll tell you what she is!" Aveline's booming voice interrupted. "She's a Witch of the Wilds."

"A 'Witch of the Wilds' eh?" The hag scoffed. "Are you so simple minded as to believe those Chasind tales? Bah! It doesn't matter. Some call me that; others, Flemeth, which you may call me; there are those that call me Asha'bellanar; or even 'an old hag who talks too much.'" Flemeth laughed at the last name as well, and even though everyone else silently agreed with the last name, they didn't dare say it.

"Are you _the_ Flemeth? The one who married Conobar?" Alex asked carefully.

"I married no such man, and that proves that everything you hear and read can altered from what it was originally told as. Word of mouth is a terribly untrustworthy way to get information. Why things are easily changed with a simple misinterpretation of words," Flemeth answered with patience. "And with that, I'll tell you one more thing: you are going the wrong way if you wish to flee the darkspawn. Now I bid you farewell."

The witch's skin started to glow with the same golden light she had flashed when she transformed from a dragon to an old hag. The heat of her magic was intense causing them all to wince from its ferocity.

"Wait! You're just going to leave us here!?" Carver shouted after Flemeth.

"Can I not?" Flemeth asked rhetorically, the light of her magic faded 'til it was out. "I have saved your lives, is that not enough? Though, I would enjoy hearing your plan on escaping the darkspawn since it will most likely fail anyways."

_Her confidence in us is __**astounding**__,_ Alex thought quietly to herself as her brother explained their "feeble" plan at feeing the darkspawn.

"We intend to travel to Gwaren, and from there, take ship to Kirkwall, in the Free Marches."

"My, my...Kirkwall is certainly...oh, what do you call it? Ah, yes...Kirkwall for a destination is certainly a bit farfetched, don't you think?" Flemeth scolded. "Do you truly think you can make it there? And even if you do, wont your king miss you?" sweet sarcasm could be heard in the last part.

"From what I have heard, I'm sure he'll miss his life more," Alex answered with a cold heart. Her tactic with dealing with emotional pain was almost the same as her brother's.

The witch was rather amused with Alex's response and erupted with boisterous laughter. The others shifted a bit at the loudness of it, already fearing that more darkspawn may be on their way and that the witch would get tired of saving their skin and leave them.

"You certainly have remarkable wit, child. Especially with the fact that you have lost someone you value in your heart," Flemeth finally said after her laughter, and its echo, had died. "Now tell me, boy: why is it you have decided to travel to Kirkwall, a templar infested, cesspit of a city, with the likes of your sister? She is, after all, an _apostate._" Flemeth put emphasis on "apostate" though she had no reason to. That word alone causes a bit of unease for the two Hawkes. It is a word only used by the ones that would try to lock mages up.

"We have family there and..." Carver hesitated, "and there's nowhere else that's reasonable to go if we wish to flee the Blight."

"Hmm..." the old hag hummed with what might have been amusement, but could also be contemplation. "Is it fate or chance? I can never decide."

Hewie sensed something different in the witch. He didn't know what, and he had no way warning his mistress, so he moved closer and squeezed up against her leg, neck fur bristling with anger and frustration that, at the moment, he could do nothing further to protect his Alex. When Hewie plastered himself against her leg, Alex looked down at Hewie for a moment, perhaps sensing his unease or just wondering why he wished to be so close to her at this moment. Either way, she did not feel something was wrong and reached down, patting her beloved Mabari on the head.

Flemeth watched the interaction between the apostate and her faithful hound with amusement. You did not often see such love between two creatures, not even if they were of the same species. The Mabari's unwavering love for his master brought up a memory of sorts and feeling that she had had towards another in almost the same way. _Pity that coin was valued more in my case,_ the witch thought coldly, as she made up her mind as to what she was going to do. "It appears that your luck is about to continue," Flemeth finally said after a few moments of silence. "Not only am I going to save you, but I will get you to Kirkwall safely."

"Not without something in return though, right?" Alex asked cynically.

"There are always catches, child, because life is the ultimate catch; and I suggest you catch while you can, or else it might soon slip out of your hands," Flemeth said bitterly towards Alex, getting narrowed eyes cast in her direction from the young mage.

"And what is yours?" Carver asked, drawing attention away from his sister like he was taught to do and has always done.

"Mine is that you make a delivery for me to a Dalish clan that won't be too far out of your way." Flemeth answered, looking between both Carver and Alex. "It is an amulet that you must give to their Keeper, Marethari. If you do this for me, any debt you owe me for saving your lives will be repaid in full."

"Not to look a gift witch in the mouth," Alex said, "but why can't you make this delivery yourself? You can transform into a dragon. Surely flying it there would be quicker."

"Indeed it would be easier for me to do it myself but...I have an...appointment to keep," Flemeth made the last of her words very elusive. The others already knew that they weren't telling them everything. What she said now only proved it more so.

"It seems that we have no choice..." Carver said sorrowfully, not liking the idea of getting "hired" to do something that he didn't even know the full terms about.

"We never do," Flemeth responded, her voice having almost the equal amount of sorrow in it. "And before we set off, there is still one thing we must do..." her eyes drifted over to Wesley.

* * *

><p>"Aveline...?" Alex's voice drifted from the hatch separating the deck from below. Her voice was soft and calm, quite obviously trying to not stray towards unpleasant topics.<p>

"Don't worry, Hawke. As you can tell, I haven't slit my wrists in grief yet. You don't need to come checking in on me," came Aveline's solemn answer.

"Please, if you're going to call someone 'Hawke,' at least call my brother it. It's just Alex."

"Funny, he said the same thing, only for you." Aveline looked up at Alex for the first time, and a shaft of light coming from up above caught her face. Her eyes were red and bloodshot. There were tear stains on her cheeks that were made more obvious by the dirt smeared on her face, or the lack there of due to her tears. Aveline's hair had gone wild and was now matted with mud. Her clothes were in the same terrible condition. Anything that was white formerly was now brown, covered in dirt and dust. There was also rips and tears throughout that Aveline had left as they were, not caring to try to fix them or to ask someone to fix them for her. She was grieving and looked the part. She had to kill her own husband because of the darkspawn taint. No one would expect her to behave any other way.

"That sounds like Carver," Alex laughed. There wasn't enthusiasm or true humor in it though. "How are you, Aveline?"

"I'm...surviving. That seems like the only thing I can do." The spark that Alex had seen in her eyes was gone. It was going to be a long time before it managed to come back. That makes one thing that a long voyage on a ship might be good for, though.

"Sometimes..." Alex agreed, the same sorrow of loss edging her words.

The two women sat there for a time, lost in their own thoughts. Aveline was thinking longingly of Wesley; Alex, of Bethany. They were two polar opposites brought together by the same loss that began the connection of friendship between them. Aveline is the robust, loud, straightforward warrior while Alex is the shy, albeit cynical, mage who stands in the shadows' of society to make sure she _does_ stay in society. They did have one other thing in common, though, other than the sorrow of losing a member of their family: they both spoke their minds and dealt with the consequences when they came rather than avoid them entirely. Not a good thing for a soldier who has to take orders or a mage who needs to lay low out of the oppressors' sight.

"Alex...how are you going to survive in Kirkwall? There are a lot of templars there," Aveline asked.

"I don't honestly know," Alex sighed. "I guess I was partially hoping that if I didn't think about it, it would just go away and not be a problem."

"Denial won't save you from it."

"Oh, you aren't kidding. I've learned that from past experiences."

"Well...however you choose to keep away from them," Aveline said, "I'll stand beside you and help in any way I can. It's the least I can do since you and your family was there for me."

"What's left of it anyways. And thank you, Aveline, but that's not necessary. Helping, well...people like me is a hanging offense in Kirkwall, or so I hear. You don't need to risk your life for me."

"You were willing to help my Wesley and he was a templar _and_ you didn't know whether or not he was going to try to lock you up afterwards. If that doesn't warrant me risking showing you a similar kindness, I don't know what does."

"Hmm..." Alex hummed, appreciating Aveline's concern, but also regretting having dragged her into this in one way or another. _One more person whose fate hangs on my ability to stay out of the templars' way,_ she thought sadly. _Endangering my family isn't enough anymore, it seems._

A very loud yawn filled the silence between Aveline and Alex as Hewie first yawned and then combined a loud whine with it. "Oh, I'm sorry, boy. Did us mean ladies wake you up?" Alex asked her hound sarcastically.

Hewie whined once more before walking over to his mistress, plopping down next to her while setting his head on her knees. He was glad she was acting more normally, talking like she used to. She was still hurting badly, he could feel her pain, but he knew that she was better than what she was when they had first started traveling with that dragon, woman, thing. Just the thought of that..._abomination_ made an inaudible growl rumble in his chest.

* * *

><p>"No! We can't leave her here!"<p>

"We have no choice. There is no way for us to take her with us. She's dead. Do you understand? Dead, and we will not all die because of your pathetic wishes."

"Bu-but can't we at least burry her," Mother wept.

Flemeth looked at the crumpled, old figure before her with disgust. How week and fragile this woman had let herself become in her complacent life was ridiculous.

"Madam, I know how much having your daughter buried means for you," Aveline said, sympathizing with Mother. "I long for nothing more for my Wesley, but we haven't the time." Tears rimmed her eyes, occasionally slipping down her cheeks. Aveline's voice wavered every now and then, but she managed to keep most of her composure. All that was needed to survive, that is.

Bethany and Wesley were positioned side by side, hands clasped over their chests. They looked peaceful. Their eyes were shut and its seemed that they were only asleep, that a simple shake could wake them up, and that Bethany would become wide awake and bicker that they had waken her up from a good dream of hers. Or that Wesley would rise groggily and move to his wife's side. But this was not the case. Their souls were gone, and if they rose again, they would not be themselves, only empty shells filled by another.

Mother rose to her feet and walked over towards Flemeth, staring her down with eyes narrowed that had hatred lighting them up. Flemeth looked unfazed and crossed her arms uncaringly. Carver moved to stand behind her, offering her his support, even though he silently agreed with the witch.

Alex had become very introverted now that the adrenaline from the fight had left along with the fear of the witch. She stood silently, eyes fixed on the ground, hands clamped so shut that her knuckles turned white. It is unknown if emotional pain is worse than physical pain, but the emotional pain she was feeling was the second worst feeling of pain in both fields. The first being when she lost Father. The others noticed the change in her shortly after they had...dealt...with Wesley, and gave her a wide berth, especially, Carver. He had seen this type of behavior before and knew the drill.

"How dare you speak to me—" a mother's rage is a terrible thing, but can be diffused quickly by an action of another child of hers.

Alex wordlessly passed between Flemeth and Mother, not giving either a glance or any acknowledgment, and stood before Bethany and Wesley. With the same silence she carried on, she moved her hand in a circular position before holding it outstretched towards those that were lost to them. Almost at once the earth around them began to shift and move. At first it was slow, but then as the spell started to take more willpower from Alex, it formed around Bethany and Wesley, encasing them in a stone like tomb. The mage then clenched her fist tightly, and two mock headstones rose up from the ground. With the sinking of her hand, parts of the stone on the headstones sunk further into itself forming the names, "Bethany" and "Wesley."

All of them, save for the witch, stared at Alex with expressions of both shock and awe. Mother and Aveline had tears in their eyes as they gazed at the work Alex had done to give the ones they love something close to a proper burial. Carver's lips twitched into a sad smile and he had another reason to respect and love his sister. Flemeth still didn't show an ounce of caring towards what was going on, but she did walk over to Alex, placing a hand on her shoulder. Alex shifted away from the touch of the cold steel gauntlet that encased the witch's hand, fashioning it into a claw that resembled what her hands look like when she is in dragon form.

"Without an end," She said rather cryptically, "there can be no peace. Come now," the witch said, addressing Mother and the others more so that Alex, "they are as close to being buried as they will get, and you're struggles have only just begun. Your path will get no easier."

The witch's words rang with the sound of prophecy, and if Alex had been more in her right mind than she was now, she would have paid greater attention to the fact that she didn't include herself in what she was saying. She would have pondered what Flemeth could have meant behind the phrases coming from her lips, preoccupied herself with what happening and how they were get out of this predicament. She would have done something other than following something with her held slightly lowered and her eyes empty.

Hewie watched the others go off in the direction of the great would he could see and smell, paying more attention to his mistress than anyone else. She was broken once more. The smell of life had drifted off her once more like so long ago. A soft whine rose from his throat before he turned to the graves Alex had erected. With the soft padding of paws, he approached them, pausing a moment. Then the honorable Mabari lowered his head to the ground, bowing for his mistress's sister that would often sneak him bits of sausages and stakes when she could get away from it, and for the stranger who smelled like those that would take his mistress away, but hadn't done so. Hewie stayed there bowing for a few moments before he raised his head to the heavens, letting loose a low and loud howl that echoed across every surface and lasted for as long as he had breath.

The howl Hewie unleashed reached the ears of Alex and the others, and they all turned to look back at where the sound was coming from. For a moment Alex looked back with crystallized eyes, shimmering with unshed tears. There were a couple of seconds of silence before the music of another howl reached their ears. This one grew higher in pitch as it crescendoed. Its sound seemed to slice through the air, moving everything and everyone in its path. It had even reached the stone cold Flemeth who had looked back with an expression of calmness, maybe even serenity. When the howl ended, the group was speechless, and the spark of life that had been reawakened in Alex was once again snuffed out.

Satisfied, Hewie gave one last glance in farewell to Bethany and Wesley before he dashed off to be at his mistress's side once more.

* * *

><p>The rigging and wood on the boat creaked and groaned as it rocked with the waves. Night had fallen and the crew had told the refugees that they were expecting to land in Kirkwall in the afternoon the following day. There were many sighs of relief from the Fereldans, but for Alex, she felt nothing but dread. It was well known that Kirkwall was filled to the brim with templars. It was unknown, though, how she would manage to stay out of the sight of them.<p>

_I believe I'm more afraid of the templars than I was of Flemeth...even though I was lost in thought most of the time she was around. It's hard to believe that someone so powerful would actually have anything to do with us, _Alex thought as she sat down below the deck. The world around her was filled with the creaking of the boat, the darkness of the hold, the sound of the rolling waves, and the heavy breathing and snoring of the others crammed down there with her. She was having difficulty finding sleep when the others had not, though, because the events of the past and of the future when they arrived in Kirkwall were pressing on her mind and troubling her. _Will we even be let in to Kirkwall?_ she wondered. _We aren't the only ones trying to seek refuge in Kirkwall. We probably won't be the first to use the "We have family here" excuse either._

Their time traveling with Flemeth had been short. They moved quickly and quietly; and for some reason, they didn't encounter any darkspawn. Alex suspected that it was because of the witch's old and powerful magic. Whenever Flemeth was near Alex, this sense of foreboding came over her and she could feel the old, foreign magic pouring from her being almost like the waves that washed against the side of the boat she was in now. Alex believed that Flemeth was an old piece of the fade that the mages and even the spirits and demons had forgotten about brought into physical form. Since the old woman, _If that's even what she was_, offered no explanation, Alex simply had her guess as an answer as to why she possessed such powerful magic that no one else could duplicate.

There had been a bit of temptation on Alex's part to ask Flemeth if she might impart her knowledge on to her, but it was quickly dispelled when she remembered Father. _He would never have approved of me learning magic from that thing that might not even be human. No doubt that it would be considered forbidden by all and could probably be considered blood magic. It's best that I stick with what I know and simply work on it for the time being._

Hewie let out a little huff, a tired sigh, next to Alex before he continued on dreaming. A small smile appeared on Alex's face as s he watched her faithful hound twitch in his sleep. _Maybe I'll see if I can't join him in sleep now,_ she thought as she lowered herself on to the wooden floor next to Hewie. It wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep in the world, but it was better than having the fear of the darkspawn pressing against her once more.

Alex's eyes drooped a little as sleep thankfully washed through her limbs. The stiffness from their fights and flight still lingered in her muscles, causing uncomfortable pangs of pain with certain movements. These were all forgotten as Alex drifted into an uneasy sleep with the shutting of her eyes. She forgot her aches and pains, but she remembered what happened only days ago.

* * *

><p>The smell of burning wood and plants was soon synonymous with the smell of burning flesh. Distinguishing one from the other became impossible as they pressed on through the woods. They were miles away from the fighting, at the crossroads of the Brecilian Forest and the Kocari Wilds. The trees stretched out to the sky here, nearly blotting it out completely. Wherever the travelers walked, they were always cast in dark shadows. The atmosphere screamed terrifying and with the darkspawn a pressing threat, everyone aside from Flemeth was jumpy.<p>

No birds sang a tune to break the deepening silence. Each of them was left to their own thoughts, and that might be a greater enemy than the one pressing at their heels.

The silence was finally broken, but with something far worse than their own deep thoughts.

"Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away!" Alex finally cried out in Tevinter before collapsing to her knees. The emotion, the weight, the fear, the silence, her troubled thoughts, everything came crashing down on her and she could no longer bear it. She could no longer stay silent.

She clasped her hands together on her lap, tears streaming down her face. "Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away! Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away! Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away!" she repeated over and over, hoping that she would be heard and that this prayer of hers would be granted.

"Alex!" Carver called to her as he shook her furiously. "Alex, what's wrong?" He had gotten there so quickly that none of them saw him leave to go to her side. Carver continued to shake her and call her name, but got no response.

Mother looked on in horror at her daughter's broken figure and at the gibberish she spoke. Hewie stayed back. Something was wrong with his mistress, and he could sense it, but he did not know how help her. Aveline only cast a quick glance in Alex's direction, having her own burden of sorrow to bear, though she did feel sorry for the mage. Flemeth looked at her with a mixed expression, unreadable by any.

"Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away! Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away!" Alex continued to chant, getting softer and softer. She began to slowly rock back in fourth in an unconscious attempt to calm herself down. "Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away!"

"I suggest you, your mother, and your friend from Ostagar continue on, boy," Flemeth finally spoke up.

"No! I will not leave her!" Carver hissed at the witch, hatred flickering in his eyes as he looked up at her from his position next to Alex.

"For your sake and hers, I suggest you do." Flemeth replied in a snappy tone. "I will stay here and bring her back to her senses."

"Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away! Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away!"

"And what makes you think—!"

"That you trust me?" Flemeth interrupted, "I have not given a reason for you to, and I know you do not, but you have my word that she will be alright, and that we will catch up with you."

"You expect me to just take your word and go?" Carver growled.

"Yes. I promised to get you all safely to Kirkwall, and I shall, but someone with a broken mind is no way to get there safely. Not to mention, that she would pose a danger to us should we get in a fight being unable to defend herself as she is," Flemeth explained impatiently. "This I will fix, but you must leave so that I might do that."

"Fine!" Carver spat. "But if you do anything!—"

"She will be back to normal with no changes to her personality, character, spirit, or whatever else you believe I can change," Flemeth interrupted once more with a touch of amusement in her voice.

Carver nodded before placing a light kiss on Alex's temple and finally leading Aveline and Mother further along the trail. Hewie cast a lingering glance at Alex before he too followed Carver.

"Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away!"

"I am afraid that your prophet will not hear you. Well, not here anyways, foolish child," Flemeth chided before walking over towards Alex. "If she truly wished for you to fly, you wouldn't need to outrun the darkspawn."

"Andraste grant me wings so that I may fly. Fly far away!"

"Enough of this..." Flemeth hiss before she rushed towards Alex and yanked her to her feet. Her metal gauntlets dug in to Alex's skin, drawing blood as she forced the broken girl to look into her eyes.

Tears stained her cheeks, and fear flashed through her eyes as Alex looked at the old witch who was now more malicious than before. Her lips quivered, and she dared not usher one more word. The witch shook her once before drawing her closer in.

"No listen here!" Flemeth hissed in a wicked voice. "There will be none of that! You did not live your life free all these years to simply lie down and die when things are starting to look bad!"

Silence.

"You will get a hold of yourself for, being as powerful as you are, it would be an incredible waste for you die due to such pitiful weakness now," Flemeth lectured.

The witch released her grip on Alex, and she toppled to the ground, limp but remaining upright.

"Get up." Flemeth said.

Silence. No movement.

"Get up!" Flemeth yelled.

Silence. No movement. A fire started to burn within her.

"Get up!" Flemeth roared.

A wildfire was started.

"You will not tell me what to do!" Alex screamed ferociously as she rose to her feet. Flemeth stared in wonder at Alex. Not only had she challenged the old witch, but she had also caught her off guard and now had her pinned to a nearby tree with a giant, clawed hand that was made entirely of spirit energy, an impressive feat by one so young in the eyes of Flemeth.

"You will not tell me what to do!" Alex repeated, her fury ebbing away. Blood was pouring down her arms as they also glowed with raw energy from the magic that was holding Flemeth. Her arms were outstretched towards the witch, and her hair fell chaotically down into her face, giving her a wild and Chasind look about her.

"No, I will not," Flemeth said, obviously amused at what had transpired. "I wonder...If this is just a fraction of your power exerted, then what would all of it released be able to accomplish?" She mused as she studied the spell Alex had cast.

Alex kept the spell in place. The feeling of letting loose so much of her power almost felt as if she was more relaxed than when she held her power back. It felt good to not have any restrictions in place by herself or those around her, at least for the time being. She was able to unleash a spell she taught herself and not fear the consequences of hurting another or making those that she loved fear her for what she could do. Already she sensed that Carver was a bit uneasy with her and her magic.

"I wonder, child, if you can do more than just a hand made out of spirit energy such as the one you continue to pin me against a tree with," Flemeth mused, the sudden change in Alex had intrigued her, as did the power she felt surging within Alex, just waiting to be released.

Whether Flemeth meant it as a subtle way of telling Alex to release the spell or not, Alex dropped her arms to her sides once more, and with that movement, her mana no longer supplied the spell and the magic subsided, leaving Flemeth next to the tree standing on her own without a helping hand.

"You certainly have a lot of power," Flemeth now continued, dusting off her clothes as if they had gotten dirty, "and quite a bit of potential. I might even be willing to pass on some of my vast knowledge on to one such as you." Alex watched her, a dark look still lingered in her eyes as she sized up and studied the witch. "I suggest you think long and hard on my offer. Few are privy to learn such magic as I possess."

Alex listened to the old woman's words carefully. There was a great deal of temptation to agree to be taught. However, she was too experienced of a mage to simply agree. Along with the temptation, Alex also had another feeling, the feeling that she was talking to a desire demon. Flemeth's words were laced nicely together to appear harmless and tempted you with something you wanted even if you weren't aware. You had to be careful with what you said when it came to demons. Your words could easily be manipulated and misinterpreted for the demon's own desires. Looking at Flemeth now, Alex decided it was probably for the best that she shouldn't refuse the witch right away. "What kind of offer are you making here?" Alex asked, testing the waters, seeing how thin the ice really was.

"I'm offering you the opportunity of a lifetime," Flemeth responded, a wicked smile spreading across her face. "It's not every day that you get the chance to learn magic that has long since been forgotten."

"By everyone except you?"

"Exactly," Flemeth said in a hiss.

Alex darted her eyes around in uncertainty. The chance to learn that what was long forgotten drew her in. How could she pass up an opportunity such as this? _"__My magic will serve that which is best in me, not that which is most base,"_ rang in her ears before she could answer for herself. _Oh, Father. I am sorry for forgetting._

Flemeth saw the change in Alex when the fierce look she had held on to slowly melted away. A softer look touched her features, and her eyes were no longer wild. The power which had been surging from Alex in waves was now diminishing and no longer as strong. Alex was no longer under the spell of temptation from Flemeth, and you would think that the old witch would be unhappy with this turn of events; but Flemeth was everything but predictable. Flemeth was her equivalent of happy that Alex had found who she was. That meant her job here was done and they could return to the others.

"What kind of magic?" Alex finally asked Flemeth with a clear mind and a determination not to be toyed with.

"Ah, you want to make sure you don't end up with any blood on your hands," Flemeth said, a touch amused. "That's rather smart of you. No doubt I would be one of the few that could stop you if you became possessed by a demon." Alex narrowed her eyes a little at the insinuation that she would fall to a demon. "Now, I know two types of magic you have not yet mastered that don't require blood, though they would work far better with it." Flemeth continued. "There's shape shifting, which I have a feeling you won't accept. And there's battle magic, a specialization in magic that I know you'll flourish in."

Alex said nothing but continued to look at Flemeth with cold, stormy eyes. "A battle field is no place to be taught magic," Alex commented coolly.

"Right you are," Flemeth agreed, "which is why I will give you a book on this magic the next time we meet."

"What makes you think we will meet again?"

Flemeth didn't respond to Alex. She simply turned around and whisked away into the trees, following the path that the rest of their party had taken. She left the question unanswered, and left an uneasy feeling with Alex. Unfortunately, Alex only had a couple of seconds to ponder what had just happened before rushing after Flemeth, lest she be left behind in unfamiliar woods with an enemy lurking somewhere close by.

* * *

><p>"Alex!" she heard whispered harshly in her ear. "Alex, wake up!"<p>

Sleep still clung about her like a heavy cloak. Alex rubbed her eyes groggily and looked into those of her older brother. "What?"

"The crew just informed us that they've spotted Kirkwall. The Gallows to be specific," Carver said, quietly for Alex's benefit. "We'll be there shortly. We're a bit ahead of schedule."Alex nodded her understanding and Carver made his way up the stairs leading to the deck.

A sickening feeling burrowed its way into Alex's stomach, and a cold dread filled her heart. _Kirkwall. We're finally here. What's going to happen to us now?_ The uncertainty and fear had always been with her since she first learned they were going to Kirkwall, but now that their destination was in sight, the fear and uncertainty came back with a vengeance, making her sick to her stomach. The realization that she was soon going to have to face her fears and uncertainty crippled her and froze her to the spot. _I'm scared. What happens if I'm unable to keep out of the sight of the many templars there?_ With horrific thoughts running through her mind, Alex nearly didn't feel the soft, warm fur that pressed against her arm.

Hewie looked at his mistress with a lopsided smile and let out a small whimper. He could sense the distress his mistress was feeling and did all he could to help alleviate it. "Oh, Hewie," Alex sighed. "You'll protect me, right?"

Hewie's goofy little tail swished along the wooden floorboards before he let out a soft "Whoof!"

The smile that brightened Alex's features was the first real smile she had since they had fled Lothering. It was the first moment of happiness she had actually had in three years, to be exact. She was grateful for that hound. Without him, she would have gone crazy ten times over.

Alex patted Hewie on the head a few times before she made her way to the deck as well, picking up the hem of her tattered robes so as not to trip on it up the stairs with Hewie following close behind her. The sight she was greeted when she made it into the sunlight on deck was not the one she was hoping for.

There, closer than she would like, was Kirkwall, the city of chains. Grotesque statues clung to the walls of what she assumed was the Gallows. _This is what all the slaves during the Imperium saw as they entered Kirkwall. _Alex knew the history of Kirkwall and of the Gallows since Father was _imprisoned_ there earlier in his life. Every inch and angle of the courtyard in the Gallows was designed by magisters bent on breaking the spirit of newcomers. Executions there took place daily, sometimes hourly, and corpses were hung from gibbets throughout the yard so that new slaves trudging in from the dock could see the horrific life that awaited them.

Alex couldn't tell if entering Kirkwall at a place originally designed to break newcomers and show them the horrible life they were destined to live was an omen or not. And she particularly didn't want to know. As fate would have it though, Alex will eventually find out that it was a bad omen and that she should not have come to Kirkwall for safety or anything else.

~~.O.~~

I am alive! I am so sorry that it has taken god knows how long for me to update. I would have done so sooner if it weren't for the fact that my computer erased EVERY FUCKING THING I had on my computer (that means all original copies of my fanfiction were erased...) But I'm back now and I am going to do my best to update as often as I can. Thanks for putting up with me!

Also, if you see any grammar, spelling, or phrasing mistakes, please review me or message me or whatever so I can fix it. Thank you! :)


	4. Chapter 4

**An End to Their New Beginning**

Terror gripped the apostate as they waited in Kirkwall for her uncle. Everywhere around her she swore she could feel eyes boring into her, just waiting for her to slip up even a little so that the templars had reason enough to come and take her away. She wasn't just afraid for herself, though. Her family and her friend were in just as much danger as she was. It was a fear that had begun to wear on them.

Waiting in the Gallows was difficult for all of them. The white stone that the entire prison was made of reflected the sun back at them, and the heat was so intense that even the shade they welcomingly receded into could only provide a little protection from the sweltering heat. Hewie was the worst off. The mabari war hound was used to warm summers, but then again, back home he had been free to run in the fields, romping around with a breeze about him to keep him cool. However, in the Gallows with their towering walls, there was no breeze and the others and his mistress feared that he would dehydrate. They all made numerous trips to the guards and templars on his behalf to ask for water. All of them except for Alex.

Alex was positioned as far away from surveying eyes as unnoticeably possible. This was difficult to do if one of them approached, or the one unusual instance when they first got off the boat and set foot in the Gallows. When inquiring about their uncle, a second band of refugees had created a scuffle, believing that the guard was showing favoritism. Alex had to force herself to stay out of the fight, which was incredibly difficult for her. If she had been able to fight, it wouldn't have nearly taken so long to dispatch the band of ruffians, and Carver wouldn't have had to bandage his arm when he received a flesh wound during the battle. The whole situation made Alex's blood boil.

_If it weren't for the templars, we wouldn't be suffering in this heat, nor would Carver be injured._ Alex continuously blamed and tortured herself with thoughts like this. If it weren't for her magic, Mother, Carver and Aveline wouldn't have to share the same fear that plagued her of getting caught. However, if she didn't have magic, the others and herself might be dead many times over when they fled to Gwaren. It was a battle over "what if's" and Alex was losing the battle. It was slowly making her impatient with herself, and no matter how hard Hewie tried, he could not get her out of her depressed, frightened state she was now in as she sat in the heart of the templars lair.

"It's been three days now!" Aveline suddenly cried. "This waiting needs to end!"

Many such phrases had been said over the past days, each of them except Alex had expressed similar beliefs. They had been waiting a long time now. The heat and fear was making them all a bit snappy at times.

"I'm sure it can't be much longer now," Mother said. "Gamlen must be looking for us."

Carver hadn't really been paying attention to Aveline's outburst. Such things like that usually only lasted a few comments before they all settled back into silence and waited once more. This time however, a figure emerging from one of the gates in the shadows caught his attention. "Speak of the abomination," he said cynically, "and he shall appear."

Mother paid no mind to Carver and when the man came into the light, cried, "Gamlen!" before rushing off to meet him.

Alex had not been paying attention at all throughout this entire thing. A loud sound similar to the beating of a drum began pounding in her ears. It was the sound of her blood pulsing at the astounding rate that her heart was chaotically beating through her veins with. At that very instant, she felt as if every wall was closing in on her, that ever stone had eyes that were boring into her, waiting for her to slip up, that every word the templars spoke was about her, that the templars had found out, and that she was doomed to die or rot in the Gallows with the rest of the mages. Alex was panicking, but the others talked and paid no mind to her, just as she paid no attention to the new beginning in Kirkwall that they were about to start.

_This is the end_, Alex thought. _This is the end of my freedom_. Her fear rose up and had a taste. It tasted like bile in the back of her throat and the heat began to make her light headed. Alex felt as if she was going to be violently sick. Sweat began to drip down the side of her face, but she did all that she could to act normal and keep those that were staring at her from suspecting anything. She didn't even hear her name being called until it had been repeated several times.

"Alex!" Carver said for the fifth time. "Are you alright?"

Alex shook her head in an attempt to shake off the fear and panic she was feeling. "I'm sorry. What did you say?" she asked in a confused manner.

"That was the fifth time I had to call your name to get you attention," Carver informed her. He was worried that something was wrong. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm alright," she replied, throwing on a fake smile. "I guess I was lost in thought more than I expected."

Carver narrowed his eyes at his little sister a bit. He could tell that she was obviously lying to him, but he didn't know why. Something was wrong, and though he would have liked to know what was wrong in case he could help her, he knew that now wasn't the time. Not to mention, Alex probably wouldn't appreciate it if he brought up her personal feelings in front of others. She was peculiar when it came to others knowing how she felt, even with him. She preferred to have everyone believe that she was perfectly fine if it made the conversations more pleasant. Alex hated it when people worried about her.

Carver nodded at her, letting her know that he believed her before turning to Aveline, "Would you mind accompanying us when we go talk to the smugglers and mercenaries?"

"Of course," Aveline answered, "just make sure that I'm not exactly part of the deal."

"Very well," Carver nodded. "Alex, you need to come with us and walk around the Gallows a little bit. We need to figure out who we'll be working with for a year to pay back them paying our way into Kirkwall."

"Indentured servitude?" Alex asked. "That's not exactly a smart idea when it comes to me, Carver." Her voice trailed off at the end, showing her fear a bit.

"I know," he replied, giving her a sympathetic glance, "which is why I was considering the smugglers as the right option even more."

"Don't worry, Alex," Aveline added. "A year is a long time. I'm sure Carver and I can manage to make you proficient at relying on the staff of yours in a fight more so than anything else."

"I suppose you're right," Alex said, lifting herself off the ground and dusting off her tattered robes. "Come along Hewie. There's no telling what they'll have us do to prove we're 'worth' the time and money."

* * *

><p>"<em>Come on," Carver said, taking a few steps towards the gate leading to Kirkwall. He glanced back at them over his shoulder. "We've got a long ways to go from here. This is only the beginning."<em>

That had been several months ago, and Alex was hating every day they spent in Kirkwall. The city was worse than the Gallows when it came to looks. It was dark, dirty, and disgusting; and the people mirrored the looks of Kirkwall. Those that lived here and weren't refugees were animals. They drank copious amounts of alcohol and didn't care for one another at all. At least when she was in Fereldan, some people would try to help you if they could. In Kirkwall, it was every man and woman for themselves. This whole city disgusted Alex, and it didn't help that she was a Fereldan trying to get by in Kirkwall. The Kirkwallers hated Fereldans. It was damn near impossible to get by with the residents of Kirkwall hounding you at every step since you weren't born here. It made it worse since she was an apostate, so not only was she trying to keep her head down for being a Fereldan, she was trying to hide who she was from the templars. Little to no magic was a rule now. Not until she had a good enough reputation to where no one would sell her out.

Carver loved it in Kirkwall though. As a big guy with a lot of strength, skill, and good looks, he got by pretty well in Kirkwall, even though he was Fereldan like Alex. He was someone you could notice, and he could be noticed because he had nothing to hide. Working for the smugglers, he made a lot of contacts and even some people he could consider friends. The women were especially nice to him and actually had a little nickname for him: Knight. The women were hoping that Carver would become their knight in shining armor and take one of them up, but he was too busy looking out for his little sister. Even with her lying low and doing absolutely nothing to give the templars anything to suspect, Carver still did more than he should to keep it that way.

"Ah, my leg fell asleep," Carver cursed as he tried readjusting his position to get more comfortable.

"Be thankful it was just your leg," Myrna, an elf who was accompanying them on this job, commented in a scolding tone, letting them know that they needed to shut up.

Alex was silent as usual. It wasn't often that she talked now that she was in Kirkwall. Not even when she was back in Gamlen's hovel did she talk that much. She just simply repositioned herself as well, and cast Carver a sympathetic look.

They were down in the dark tunnels under Kirkwall. They were in Darktown, waiting for a rival group of smugglers to come through. They were to be an ambush and bring a message they were no longer to step in on Athenril's smuggling business. They had tried to take one too many contracts from her and she wasn't about to let that slide. That's why Athenril sent her best fighters to deal with this group. Her sources said that this group was smuggling in important goods for a major contact of theirs. If they sabotaged it and actually stole the goods instead of merely destroying them, it would sever all trust between the rival smugglers and their contact. That was what Athenril was looking for. She didn't want to simply just take out a small amount of the smugglers. She wanted to send a message.

Carver was her strongest warrior, sending him was a no brainer. Myrna was the best rogue in the business aside from Athenril herself. And Alexandria, well, Athenril knew that she was a mage, but she had also gotten so proficient at fighting with staves that she could now hold her own without magic. Alexandria would be "plan b." In case the fighters she sent couldn't do the job, magic would be the backup. They were all aware of this, and as much as Alex hated being used for her magic, she couldn't help but acknowledge the cunning Athenril had when it came to these plans.

Sitting in the silence of their cramped hiding spot, the three of them could do nothing but wait. Occasionally one of them would shuffle themselves a bit to get into a more comfortable position, but otherwise, they sat in complete silence. Each of them had this nagging doubt that maybe they had been misinformed or maybe even tricked. The last thing they wanted to do was to return to Athenril empty handed, informing her that they either missed their target or that they had been lied to or tricked. After all, even the most understanding of smugglers still lose their patience.

The footsteps coming from the other side of the tunnel echoed loudly off the walls, reaching the trio's ears with ferocity similar to thunder. Carver, Myrna, and Alex all rose to their feet slowly, concealed in the shadows. There they didn't have to wait very long before the owners of those footsteps appeared on the far edge of the tunnel, walking in rows down the center. Once they stepped into light, Athenril's trio could make out that three of the group were carrying big rucksacks on their back. Those three were in the center of the group marching down the tunnel, and it was safe to assume that the others were either hired mercenaries or the muscle recruited by their boss.

A plan had already been made as to how to take care of them. The three would split up, clinging to the outer edge of the tunnel, on the higher level used for putting the supports in the ceiling back when the tunnel was first constructed. Carver would take the left of the group; Myrna, the right; and Alex would pick off any stragglers that tried to get away, either with magic, or by direct combat by taking up position in front of the group.

Carver and Myrna had already dropped back into the shadows and made their way silently to their positions. Alex stayed in the corner they had originally been hiding in, waiting for the signal to drop down and bolt to the front of the group to meet them head on.

The silence gave them all a false sense of security, even to those that were marching through the tunnel. Myrna was just about to give the signal when the rival smugglers halted in their march.

"So, Athenril only sent two of you here to take care of us," one of the smugglers called. He had a voice of authority and was clearly in charge of this operation. "What a pity. I was hoping to send more bodies home to her, but I'll make do with just two."

With the ending of his little speech, the hired muscle dropped their shields, revealing that they had crossbows hidden behind them. They all took aim either at Carver or Myrna. None of them had seen Alex, giving her a chance to catch them off guard and release all her pent up energy from not using any spells in a long while.

Alex quickly dropped from the ledge she had been on, hiding in the corner, and bolted in front of the group. The sudden movement she made caught all of their attention. "There's actually three of us," she spat before she brought her hands together in a wide arched clap aimed at the smugglers. Only, instead of the sound of a clap, all the smugglers heard was the "whoosh" of fire rapidly expanding before they were completely engulfed in flames. Alex had cast a spell involving fire, and fire now leapt from her fingertips towards the smugglers, wrapping them in a torrential vortex of flames, incinerating all of them except for the three carrying the rucksacks. Those three were a bit singed by the flames for being in close proximity to them, but they were otherwise unharmed, for the moment.

When the spell was ended, silence took hold of the tunnel once more until the remaining smugglers collapsed on to their knees, kicking up the ashes of their comrades. Myrna, who was once paralyzed with awe and fear of Alex's spell now dropped down and made her way towards the fools that were now cowering on their knees.

"That was a nice trick," she commented shakily towards Alex before removing each of their rucksacks and checking the contents to see if they were what they were sent for. "We're done here," she then added, satisfied with what they had. "Kill them."

Alex understood that the order was directed to her instead of Carver, who had dropped down and joined them. She raised her hand towards them and released the spell just in time to hear one of the smugglers beg, "No, please don't—" before the lightning bolt struck him and the two others in the heart. Stopping them cold, killing them instantly and without pain.

Carver, Myrna, and Alex each turned away and retreated out of the dank tunnel. Their job there was done and they were now going to report back to Athenril.

"So how is your new beginning in Kirkwall going for you two?" Myrna asked.

"Our new beginning ended when we first set foot in the Gallows," Alex answered coldly.

* * *

><p>"What, in the name of the Maker, were you thinking Alexandria!?" Carver exclaimed once they had made it back to the hovel they now shared with Gamlen, Mother, and Hewie.<p>

"What...?" Alex asked. Her brother was furious at _her_. It was unheard of.

"What were you thinking using magic like that? You completely exposed what you were to all of them!"

Alex noticed that Mother had come out of the room they shared and was watching them both from the doorway. Alex's eyes flickered toward Mother before settling back on Carver. "Yes, and now they're all dead," Alex retorted. "And in case you didn't notice, I saved your life."

"And Myrna's." Carver added.

"So that's what this is about? You're afraid that a smuggler, who has murdered more people than you and I can count, might go to the guards or templars and sell us out?" Alex asked incredulously.

"Yes, that's what this is about!" Carver snapped. "We have no idea if we can trust her."

"You have got to be kidding me!" Alex yelled. "All the time we have been here I have barely even used magic, not even to heal your wounds. And the one time I do, you want to yell at me for it! I only used magic to save your life, no other reason!" She was breathing hard now and angry, very angry. "You're ridiculous and impossible, you know that?"

"I'm impossible!? You're the one who had to incinerate half a dozen people or so!" Carver slammed his fist against the wall. Alex flinched as if the blow had been landed on her. "Is it too hard for you to quit using magic altogether!? I've worked so hard at keeping your secret, and then you go and light all my efforts on fire, literally!"

"If you're so worried about people talking," Alex screamed, "why don't you go sleep with Myrna and Athenril!? That should keep them from talking for a while."

Mother stood horrified in the doorway of the two siblings she had never seen fight in all their lives. If anything, Carver and Alexandria were the ones she could count on to always get along. But this argument and how violent it had gotten terrified her. She had no words. She could only watch. A nudge against her hand from Hewie didn't even shake the trance she was in from the fight.

Hewie was just as confused as Mother and his mistress about the fight. He longed to go to his mistress' side and comfort her, but he felt as if his movement might make the fight escalate more than it already had. Hewie thought it would be best to do as his mistress' Mother had, and just watch from the doorway as a silent referee for the time being.

Alex had began backing away from Carver and towards the door. "I can't stop being a mage, Carver, no matter how much you and I wish it were so!" And with those final words, Alex opened the door bolted outside and slammed the door behind her. She didn't even let Hewie escape the hovel with her. The scratching on the door and whimpering she heard coming from the other side nearly made her lose her resolve and open the door for him. But she was too angry to go back. She just wanted some time alone, away from people she knew.

Alex was still breathing hard when she walked down the steps and moved towards the Lowtown markets. _How dare he! _she screamed in her head. She wanted nothing more than to go back there and slap him. But that wouldn't make anything better, plus Carver would probably be able to catch the blow before it reached him. Storming off was the next best thing. _I have done nothing, NOTHING, to make him treat me like this! Ever since we got into this accursed city, I have only used magic in absolute worst case scenarios! I can't change who I am! I can't stop using magic! It's like leaving a thief in a vault filled with precious jewels and expansive treasures and telling the thief not to try and steal as much as he can. It's an impossible situation!_

The markets were bustling with people running errands and simply loitering around. This group of busy people even overflowed from the markets and trickled around the Hanged Man a bit. It took a lot of work on Alex's part to keep herself from bumping into any of them. Still...with the argument she had with her brother still burning in her heart and mind, she didn't see the Kirkwaller step out in front of her.

"Hey! Watch were you're going!" He hollered as they collided.

"I'm sorry, serah," Alex stuttered politely. "I didn't see you there."

Alex turned to leave, but an iron grip held her firmly by the arm. "I didn't say you could leave!" The Kirkwaller growled menacingly.

"Please let go of me," she said quietly, yet loud enough to be heard. Her anger was burning with a more intense heat, directed at this man. A dangerous light gleamed in her eyes.

The Kirkwaller snickered, "Or what? Whatcha gonna do, Fereldan trash?"

"Stop touching me," Alex said with cold determination dripping off of her words, causing the Kirkwaller to second guess what he was doing for a moment.

"Excuse me, is there a problem here?" came a new voice, a voice you would hear coming from a smooth talker.

"No, no problem here," the Kirkwaller answered. "This bitch's just giving me a bit of lip is all."

There had been an instant of polite asking and of being told to stop. Alex now felt as though she had every reason to get this man to let go of her by force. While the Kirkwaller was distracted with the new man, Alex brought her knee up hard between his legs. The Kirkwaller keeled over and let go of her, but that wasn't enough for Alex. She wanted to give him one last blow. Cocking back her left arm, she gave him a powerful left hook to his jaw, sending him backwards where he tripped and fell.

"I told you to stop touching me," Alex said calmly, gazing at the Kirkwaller.

"Fereldan bitch!" The Kirkwaller spat before running off.

"Tell me something I don't know."

"Yeah," the voice of the smooth talker came, "I wasn't asking him anyways." Alex now turned to the voice and was surprised to find not a man, but a dwarf. "Are you alright?" the dwarf asked politely.

"Yes, I am. Thank you." Alex said these words quickly.

"Not a problem. Now, before you walk off," the dwarf mused, "you wouldn't happen to be the sister of Carver Hawke, would you?"

"I might be..." Alex answered cautiously. She was getting ready to run at a moment's notice. Being recognized always spells danger for apostates.

"That's what I thought," the dwarf said. "It was a pleasure meeting you, serah Hawke." And with that, the smooth talking dwarf turned on his heel and made his way to the Hanged Man.

Alex watched him, puzzled, making sure that he indeed entered the Hanged Man rather than turn heel and bolt to the nearest templar. When the door of the Hanged Man closed behind the dwarf, she let out a breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding. _What a strange dwarf,_ she thought. _Are they all like that?_ With her mind at ease and the confrontation over, Alex continued walking to the markets and looked like a thoughtful browser as she danced from shop to shop, carefully avoiding all Kirkwallers because she was sure that the dwarf wouldn't be around to give her the distraction she needed next time. Her eyes looked lazily from one item to the next but her mind was elsewhere.

That argument she had with Carver kept calling her mind back. And it wasn't just the argument that consumed her attention; it was what had caused it that did. She had used magic. She was a mage. She was a danger to her family in more ways than simply being caught by the templars, yet she couldn't do anything to fix it. She was stuck with the curse of magic. She had untold power at her fingertips, but she couldn't use it. She could heal all wounds, yet she was forbidden to do so. Alex was a fugitive, an apostate, a mage. She could go to the circle, but tranquility was the only way to free herself from her curse of magic, the only way to make sure she didn't harm anyone. But would she truly be free if she was tranquil?

_I wish I had been born normal, that I didn't have magic. Then we wouldn't have to worry about the templars, Carver wouldn't get frustrated and wear himself out worrying about me all the time, and I wouldn't be a threat to everyone that's around me._ Such thoughts plagued the mind of the troubled mage. The encounter with the odd, smooth talking dwarf was quickly pushed into the back of her mind and then forgotten. It wouldn't be for a few more months that the memory would be dug back up and the strange meeting between Alex and that dwarf would mean anything.

* * *

><p><em>This isn't going to work,<em> Alexandria thought as Carver began striking up a conversation with the dwarf Bartrand. In fact, even before they had gotten to Hightown, she had informed Carver that their "last ditch effort" at making some coin and a name for themselves wasn't going to work; but he insisted anyway, saying that they should at least try since it wouldn't hurt them to do so. _Except for maybe crushing what little hope we have left,_ she had thought, but didn't say. She just left Carver to do all the talking.

Alex stood behind Carver, like a shadow. She stayed in the background, kept an eye out for templars, and stayed as unnoticeable as possible in Kirkwall. She even dressed in plain, light clothing and armor to look normal. Robes were a dead giveaway that you were a mage. As did staves, which is why she had a "custom made" staff with blades on both ends so that it looked less like a mages weapon of choice and more like just an interesting weapon that most people never use because you need to learn a completely different fighting style. That fighting style was something Alex had to teach herself, with the help of Aveline and Carver, and had managed to master, so to speak.

As of now, Alex's fashion consisted of black leather boots, dark grey leggings, and a black skirt. She had on two things that consisted of her shirt: the first was a skin tight black shirt, and on top of that she had a grey overlay made of tougher material laced together with sting on the sides with a hood she now wore to conceal her hair and most of her face. Over the top of this, she wore a sturdy jacket that ended at the same length her skirt did. It was a dark, navy blue. The jacket was held snugly on her hips by a black leather belt with a pouch resting on her right hip where she kept herbs and poultices. It was one of her more elaborate armors that she owned and the one that looked the most like what a mage might wear, yet it didn't scream "mage."

_*****(Author's Note: If you having difficult imagining it, think Anders' getup but in female form, with a hood, and without the goofy shoulder, feather things)*****_

Carver was warrior and cunningly getting what he wanted through conversation wasn't his style. Even if it was, Alex doubted that he would have gotten the end result they were hoping for. "Listen, we heard that you're going into the Deep Roads, so that means that you'll need the best, and we're—"

"No!" said the dwarf, Bartrand, as he interrupted Carver before he could make his point. "Andraste's tits human, do you know how many people want to sign up for this expedition?"

"But we've fought darkspawn before," Carver argued, "how many of your hired men can say the same?" In the beginning his grounds for why he should hire Alex and him were weak, but now they were steadily going downhill.

"I don't care if you've torn the horns off an Ogre just to get here," Bartrand growled. "I said no!"

"You talk to him," Carver said, turning to Alex. "Maybe since you need this expedition more than I do you can talk some sense to him.

Alex looked at Carver for a second, a flash or anger dancing through her eyes. Things hadn't been the same between the two of them since their argument months ago. "My brother may have a point," Alex said calmly with charm while sliding the hood of her head. "It's on his head, but it's still valid."

"Thanks for that," Carver grumbled.

"My point is that if you get to know us, Bartrand," Alex continued, spinning her words with a soft elegance and charm that tempted most to do as she suggested, "have a few drinks, and get to know us, you'll see that we're—"

"Listen sweetheart, everyone in Kirkwall wants to be my best friend right now," Bartrand sneered. He paused and took in another breath before he continued, "You're looking for a quick way out of the slums right? You and every other Fereldan in this dump." Bartrand had enough of Alex and Carver and now walked away throwing his hands up in frustration at what he had to put up with. "Find another meal ticket."

Alex turned to her brother, "Well, I hate to say I told you so," she started.

"I don't want to hear it, Alexandria."

A shrug was the only response she gave before heading towards the markets and, from there, to Lowtown.

"Alex, wait!" Carver called after her. "We need to figure out how we're going to be one step ahead of everyone. We've got nothing stopping someone from trying to sell us out right now since we're no longer working for Athenril. We may have made a name for ourselves paying off our debt for a year, but we're still not important enough to keep the templars off our backs."

"If anything, I know that better than anyone else," Alex retorted, not stopping. "Ugh, Hey! Watch it!" She suddenly cried out as this red head kid ran full speed into her.

"Alex," Carver said, "your purse..." He took off after the red head kid as soon as the words had been said.

"What? Oh...Maker!" Alex soon followed in pursuit of the thief and her brother.

The red haired kid hadn't made it very far before he was stopped by a dwarf. When Carver and Alex had caught up, he was giving the kid some advice about finding a new line of work. Spinning a crossbow bolt on his fingers, the dwarf turned to them with a smile on his face. Alex was no longer wearing her hood, her long black hair billowing out and around her shoulders, and it couldn't conceal the shocked look on her face. It was the same dwarf she had bumped into months ago when she had an unpleasant run in with a Kirkwaller.

The dwarf gave her a nod in recognition before saying, "It is good to see you again, Alexandria Hawke." He greeted her with a formal bow as well. He then tossed Alex back her coin purse, which he had retrieved from the thief before sending him on his way. "And it is a pleasure to meet you Carver Hawke."

"You know this dwarf?" Carver turned to Alex, skeptically.

"No," Alex answered. "He clearly knows us, however."

"Varric Tethras, at your service," Varric said smugly. "And the name 'Hawke' is on many lips these days with the reputation you built up working for Athenril."

"Which Hawke?" Carver asked.

"Both of you actually," Varric answered. "The warrior who is incredibly skilled with a two handed blade and has dashing good looks, and the weird and quiet woman with an unusual weapon but equally as deadly. That kind of..._infamy_ isn't bad for a Fereldan fresh off the boat."

"I would have preferred to be nameless," Alexandria muttered under her breath.

"Being famous didn't help us with Bartrand any," Carver commented on top of Alex's muttering. Neither he nor Varric had heard what she said.

"I apologize for Bartrand," Varric said. "He wouldn't know an opportunity if it hit him square in the jaw."

"And you would?" Carver asked skeptically.

"I would," Varric said with a shocked tone that anyone would suggest otherwise. "What my brother doesn't realize is that we need someone like you. He would never admit it either; he's too proud. I, however, am quite practical."

"Bartrand didn't seem like he was in the hiring mood," Alex piped up.

"We don't need another hireling," Varric said. "We need a partner."

"A partner?" Carver asked. "This is sounding more and more complicated."

"Complicated, yes," Varric replied, trying to sound as convincing as possible. "Impossible, no. You see, the truth is that Bartrand's been tearing his beard out trying to fund this expedition on his own, but he can't do it." He paused for a bit to let that sink in before finally continuing on. "If you invest in the expedition, say… fifty sovereigns, he won't refuse. Not with me there to vouch for you." Varric finished with a smile, hoping that the big number he gave them wouldn't scare them off.

"Even if we did come up with that kind of coin," Carver said, narrowing his eyes a little, "your brother doesn't seem like the type that would actually split profits."

"My brother is many things," Varric said in a tone that was surprisingly not hostile or defensive about the remark made towards his brother, "but he is not stupid. Better to share the profits than be trapped in a thaig with a thousand darkspawn between you and the exit. Trust me; he'll come around."

"You're asking for a lot of coin, though," Carver continued.

"You need to think big," Varric said, throwing his arms wide. "There's only a brief window after a Blight when the Deep Roads won't be crawling with darkspawn. The treasure that you find down there could set you and your family up for life."

Carver still looked uneasy about the whole thing, but Alexandria saw the risks of this venture and saw that the risks of not taking this chance were even greater. She laid a hand on Carver's shoulder. "Carver, Varric does make some sense, and we need it. It is a good idea, and it's certainly better than the alternative." It was the kindest, softest thing she had said to him since their argument several months ago.

"We work together, you and I, and before you know it, you'll have all the capital you need. What do you say?" Varric added, working him over onto his side.

Carver met Alexandria's eyes before finally nodding. "Very well, Varric. We have a deal."

"Perfect," Varric purred while grinning. "This is the start of a new beginning." He then added, helpfully. "Kirkwall's crawling with one-shot jobs. If you know where to look they're easy to get, and usually pay well. You set aside some coin from every job and you'll have the money in no time."

"Sure...no time," Carver nearly groaned. Making that much coin still sounded impossible as far as he was concerned.

"We could always see if Aveline has any bounties out," Alex offered. "She's a lieutenant now and probably could give us a hand."

Varric smiled at the progress that was already being made. "We should talk again later when you get the chance," he said. "There are some other details about this expedition that I need your help with. Swing by the Hanged Man when you're free and I'll be there." And with that, the smooth talking dwarf walked away with a smile, heading to Lowtown.

Alex looked at Carver with the closest thing to a smile he's seen on her lips in a long time. "Well, that was one of the most interesting conversation's I've had since we've gotten here," she said.

"Yeah," Carver agreed. "I just hope this all pays out with us on top at the end of it."

"I'm sure it will, brother," Alexandria said smoothly, innocently. "The worst thing that could happen is that we simply don't come up with the money in time." _Or I get caught by the templars. Whichever comes first. But I suppose you already know that, so I see no point in mentioning it to you._

"As you say," Carver said, unconvinced by her. "We should make our way to the Viscount's keep now. We may be able to catch Aveline off-duty."

"You lead, I follow," Alexandria nodded. _The things we have to put ourselves through to keep me free. In this city, I'm not sure it's even worth it._

* * *

><p>The Viscount's Keep was designed with a certain taste in mind. Neither Alexandria, nor Carver had that taste. It was elaborate, big, and gaudy. No wonder the wealthy liked it here. The Keep was a reflection of the kind of wealth it took to be here. All the gold and decoration must have coasted them a pretty price. And that's not including the stone work and labor required. <em>There's no way that they actually paid the slaves that built this,<em> Alexandria thought to herself as she and her brother traversed their way through the Keep and past the wealthy nobles to the guard's quarters. _I wouldn't mind these rich people if they didn't have to look down at everyone that wasn't living as expansively as they are. _The red carpeting underfoot followed them as they walked, muffling their footsteps. It wasn't long before they found themselves amongst the guards.

Alexandria regained a sense of foreboding whenever any type of authority was present: guard or templar. She tried to make herself as small as possible as she followed behind Carver, hiding in his shadow. She was doing everything right to not be noticed. And Carver was doing everything he could to be noticed. He was taking the focus away from his little sister. He walked proud and held himself up in a way that just caught people's attention, especially if those watching were female.

The duo spotted Aveline right away. The flaming red hair was a dead giveaway. Even though all the guards wore the same uniform, you could always pick her out of all of them if they were in a formation.

As they neared her, Alex gained a bit more confidence in her surroundings and approached without too much fear. "It's good to see you again, Aveline," she greeted her once they came to stand behind her.

"Hello, Alexandria," was the response they got. Aveline sounded completely bored.

"It's been a while," Carver said awkwardly, "hasn't it?"

"What?" Aveline asked, sounding truly confused. "Oh, sorry," she turned to face Alex and Carver. "It feels as if we've talked recently. I've been keeping an eye on you."

Any confidence that Alex had gained shattered. The feeling of being watched and being very afraid reasserted itself over her and her actions. A prickling sensation rose on the back of her neck and she felt as if she was a wild animal caught in a cage. Being watched, even for benevolent reasons, was dangerous to an apostate trying to stay clear of everyone.

"Information is one of the perks of this job," Aveline continued, not realizing that Alexandria was drawing back inside of herself and no longer going to speak candidly. "Watch out for Bartrand," she warned. "He's a son of a bitch."

"You know I don't like it when you have people watch me," Alex snapped defensively and quietly.

"And with good reason," Aveline replied, not offended in the least. "And it saved me from having to camp on your doorstep." Her tone took a somber mood, "After what we went through to get here..." Aveline paused for a moment. "Well, you're no child. But I take care of my friends."

Alexandria felt only slightly better about the whole situation, but she offered a small nod of understanding so that there were no sour feelings between them later on if something like this came up again.

"Besides," she continued, reading Alex's nod, "the places they've got me patrolling, I've got time."

"Still having difficulty?" Carver asked. "I thought you were past all that."

"I thought so," Aveline answered, leaning up against the wall nonchalantly, "but recently I'm not so sure. I've been put on some dead patrols. Maybe I stepped on someone's toes. I don't know."

"You can be..." Carver paused looking for the right, least offensive word, "forceful."

"My charm, right?" Aveline asked with a small smile. "I should be able to go where I'm needed." She took a moment to gather her thoughts. "In fact, I might have a job for you," she finally said, offhandedly. "Let me know if you want to do a favor for Kirkwall."

Carver and Alex had come here looking for a job, but Carver was feeling a little uneasy. This job Aveline had mentioned right after admitting that things weren't going so great didn't sound concrete. Yes, he considered Aveline somewhat of a friend, but why should he do a job when there's no guarantee of getting paid for it. Plus, if he was going against someone high up in the guard, there could be some serious repercussions from it. Repercussions that might jeopardize his sister's freedom. Then again, they hadn't really heard of any jobs lately. This might have to be their first step to getting known for accomplishing things in a positive outlook.

"Alright Aveline," Carver said. "You have something worth doing?"

"My patrols may be just walks in empty parts of the city at night," Aveline started, "but something big is coming up. Something I could use your help with:" she saw that Carver and maybe Alex were listening intently and continued, "an ambush. Probably for a caravan, though I can't come up with any shipments that match up." Alexandria started looking a little skeptical; Aveline kept giving them details on the job, "It doesn't matter though. Highwaymen looking for someone to rob. I'm putting a stop to it, my district or not."

Carver was receiving more misgivings about this job, but they had little choice. What else could they do? "Alright, Aveline. We'll help you with this."

Aveline's smile was real, "I knew I could count on you two." Alexandria shuffled a little, uneasy for the same reasons her brother was. "They'll be hitting the caravan on Sundermount. It's rough country so bring durable clothes and some hiking boots." She paused. "I have to be there with you for it, though. We'll meet here tomorrow morning. Sound good?"

"We shouldn't have a problem with that," Carver said.

Aveline gave them a small nod before they departed.

Alexandria and Carver received the same glaring looks from the nobility as they had when the first entered the Viscount's Keep as they now left it. _I hate being noticed,_ Alex inwardly sighed. _Even though they won't remember me beyond two minutes from now, I still hate feeling their eyes on me. I hate it when any eyes are on me. I hate this city. Every step I take, I always feel as if I'm being watched. It feels as though someone will be there if I ever slip up._

Alexandria remained lost in her thoughts of paranoia as she exited the Keep with her brother into the blinding sun of the afternoon.

* * *

><p>"<em>My children have been in servitude! Servitude! For a year! They should be nobility!"<em> The sound of Mother yelling at Gamlen was the first thing Alexandria and Carver heard when the approached the door to Gamlen's hovel. It was what they usually heard from the stairs outside the door. And it was always about the same thing: Gamlen losing all the money the mighty Amell's once had. Mother still couldn't wrap her head around that. It was easy for Carver and Alexandria. They had never been extremely wealthy. Mother, however, had been. And she couldn't believe that running off with an apostate when she already had an arranged marriage planned would cause her father to leave nothing to her.

Carver gave Alexandria a sideways glance, trying to see if there was any reaction; but like always, she wore a blank expression. Only in rare instances could you tell what she was thinking by expression. That had always been slightly the case back in Lothering. Sometimes she could successfully hide what she was feeling from them, but Carver always knew what she was feeling or thinking then. He had been extremely close to his sister, like a protector that knew her better than she did. But...this city, Kirkwall, had changed her. Carver no longer knew what Alexandria felt or thought. He no longer knew who she was.

"If wishes were poppy," Carver and Alex heard as they opened the door, "we'd all be dreaming!" Gamlen had argued back at Mother.

"I can't believe that Father left me nothing!" Mother hissed.

"Well, Mother was pretty steamed when you ran off with that Fereldan apostate!" Gamlen bit back at her.

"I'm still their daughter!" Mother continued, "their eldest!"

"You were supposed to marry the Comte de Launcet, and instead you ran off with some Fereldan apostate," Gamlen retorted. "You don't get to stay the favorite when you do that!"

After watching them argue for a bit, Carver decided to play peacemaker, "This is the way things are, Mother. Gamlen can't change that now."

Alexandria stepped around the argument and went over to Hewie. He was laying on the ground panting heavily. Alex worried about him. City life wasn't treating him well. Hewie was still used to the big open fields he could romp around in. Being cooped up all the time was boring him and make him a little lackluster. _I'd bring him with me more, but I worry about his safety..._ Alex thought, justifying leaving Hewie behind all the time._ I should let him get out more, though. I'll take him with me whenever we go to talk with Varric, and when we go to help Aveline with her ambush,_ she decided. _That should do him good._ Alexandria stroked him a couple of times, flattening out the rough patches of his smooth fur. Hewie opened his eyes a little, and turned to give her hand a lick before resting his head on the floor again.

Meanwhile, the argument continued. "Where is Father's will? If I could just see for myself—" Mother said before getting cut off.

"It's not here, alright!?" Gamlen growled. "It was read, it went in the vault! No one needed to look at it again!"

"That touched a nerve," Alex chimed in, narrowing her eyes at her uncle as she rose from where she was squatting next to Hewie. "What's in there that you don't want us to see?"

"Nothing!"

"We have a right to see it, Uncle," Carver said.

"Well, you won't be seeing the bloody thing anytime soon." Gamlen responded smugly. "It's still locked up on the estate. And that's long out of my hands."

"Because something like that isn't important at all," Alexandria commented accusingly.

Gamlen narrowed his eyes at is niece. She had always been a strange one as far as he was concerned, and she had that damn magic in her too. It made things a lot worse for them all, because of her. She was a thorn in the side, a threat to their freedom. Gamlen didn't think he'd ever like Alexandria. "It was old news!" he snapped. "You think I've been sitting here for twenty-five years waiting for Leandra to slink back!?"

Mother looked at Gamlen with slight disgust. "Who bought the estate, Gamlen? Perhaps I could speak to them." She asked, a slight hopeful edge in her voice. "Was it the Reinhardts?"

"No one you know," Gamlen said dismissingly, walking off. "Get used to Lowtown, Sister. It's where we're going to stay." The door slammed behind him as he probably headed off to one of the cheaper taverns to get drunk once more.

Mother looked over at her children before walking away with a feigned calmness to the room they shared, closing the door behind her.

Carver turned to face Alexandria for the first time since they left the Viscount's Keep. "Maker, what a mess," he sighed, shaking his head. "I want to make things better for Mother, but some of what Gamlen says..." he paused. "I'm having a hard time hating him." Carver tried reading Alex for a response. She wasn't forthcoming with a verbal or expressive response, so he continued. "Playing caretaker for a life someone else left behind, stuck in the shadows... That's no way to live."

"It's how I have to live," Alexandria said coldly, sorrowfully, "always in the shadows. You'd think that Uncle would be more used to such a life than I am seeing as he's older, yet he's not." Alexandria closed her eyes, fighting back the tears of frustration she had successfully been hiding from her brother. "I'm used to keeping myself hidden and having the things I do swept under the rug. What Mother is trying to dig up is nothing more to me than a bigger shadow to hide in and a bigger rug for my actions to go under."

"Alexandria, I—" Carver was at a loss for words. Never has he heard Alex talk so harshly about her life. He's never heard the resentment for herself in her speech before. She opened up only slightly and proved what he already started to fear: Carver no longer knew who Alexandria was. She has always been optimistic about having to hide, but now she regarded herself with hate for it. _It's this city,_ he thought angrily. _Kirkwall is changing her. All these blasted templars. The fear of getting caught, the fear of her jeopardizing us with her magic is making her hateful towards herself and cold to the rest of the world._

Even if Carver hadn't been at a loss for words, Alex would have still interrupted him, "If you'd ever bumped into Gamlen when he's drunk, you would have heard this ridiculous tale of him selling the estate to settle a debt."

Alex's transition into another topic couldn't have been any rougher, but Carver let her do it anyway. There had been nothing that he could have said to make things right at that moment. "And how would that tale go and with how much truth?"

"Mostly truth," Alex answered. "And it was something about our dear Uncle being up to his neck in debt and signing everything over to a group of slavers to settle that debt." At that, both Carver and Alex shook their heads in unison. "Apparently the most extensive wine cellar in Kirkwall is now a highway for slavers from the Undercity to Hightown. That's our family Legacy."

"I'm sure that if those slavers happen to turn up dead while we look for Mother's missing paperwork no one would mind," Carver said, roughly with a bloodthirsty gleam in his eye.

"I'm almost positive that no one will miss them," Alexandria agreed. "And I've got just the trick up my sleeve to help us make them magically disappear." With that said, Alex produced a small key from her sleeve. "Mother's old key. She gave it to me to see if I could stir some things up." Carver raised an eyebrow at her. "It's supposed to unlock every door in the estate. Including the door leading to the estate in Darktown."

"All right, sister," Carver nodded, smiling a bit at Alex's cleverness. "If the key works, we'll clear the estate out from the Undercity up and get Mother that damn will."

* * *

><p>The Hanged Man was one of the "nicer" taverns in Lowtown. In all honesty, it was sad that such a place was actually considered nice. The floorboards were stained with vomit and the smell of it lingered in the air no matter where you went. The tables and chairs were worn down, some with smooth edges, others rough from when they'd been used in a fight and put back together. This was a place where everyone could know your name if you visited it regularly. Thankfully they didn't know Alex, Carver, however, was getting quite a bit of attention from the women in the bar.<p>

When they first entered the Hanged Man, they had to ask one of the waitresses where they could find Varric. It certainly wasn't hard for the waitress to tell Carver and Alex where he was seeing as he rented the biggest room on the second floor. Carver thanked the woman kindly before walking towards the staircase with a shadow following him. Even in a place bustling with life like the Hanged Man and with Hewie by her side, Alexandria still could manage to be unseen.

Carver and Alexandria entered Varric's room quietly. He quickly spotted them and unfurled a map that had been lying on the table. Carver went over to discuss things with him while Alex was momentarily distracted by a bookshelf. She went over there to see if there were any good books, with Hewie in toe, while Varric quickly got straight to business.

"So here's the thing," he said. "We need to find a way into the Deep Roads." Varric then started pacing back and forth. Bartrand can lead us to the right place once we're down there, but we need a good entrance."

"I've fought darkspawn," Carver replied. "But I've never been in the Deep Roads."

"Isn't an entrance something you should plan your expedition around?" Alexandria asked, looking up from an open book she held in her hands. She had been skimming a few pages to see if it was good, but erotic literature was something she wasn't interested in. She snapped the book shut before walking over to stand beside Carver. Hewie almost followed, but there was a nice breeze coming from the window that could only be felt from where he was sitting, so he stayed. Alex was moving around too much for him to effectively stay by her side.

"We had one set up but it was a bust," Varric dropped his head a little before leaning over the map on the table, his hands bracing against it for support. "Fortunately, I've received some new information." He pushed himself off the table, and faced Carver and Alex straight on. "There's a Grey Warden in the city. If anyone knows how to get down there, it'll be him."

_A Grey Warden? I wonder if I'll have any time to ask questions and maybe get some answers,_ Alex mused, amazed. As a child, and even now as an adult, she had always been in love with the stories of the Grey Wardens. She would often beg Father to tell her more stories about he knew about them or repeat the ones he had already shared with her multiple times. He had always been hesitant to talk about the Wardens. Alex didn't know why, and she still didn't. But every now and then Father would tell her a story or bring back a new book for her to read. Alex knew pretty much everything about the Wardens aside from their closely guarded secrets.

"I've met a few Grey Wardens back at Ostagar," Carver said, "but why would they know how to get down into the Deep Roads?"

"Grey Wardens don't just sit around waiting for a Blight," Alex answered. "They also forge down into the Deep Roads from time to time. Mostly to get information on the darkspawn since we know so little about them. There might be other reasons, but if so, the Wardens keep it all very secret."

"That's right," Varric said with raised eyebrows. "And if he doesn't know, he might be able to point us to someone that does." He turned his attention directly to Alex, "How do you know so much about the Grey Wardens."

Alex blushed slightly, "When I was little, I used to have fantasies about running off and joining the Grey Wardens."

"You still do, don't you?" Varric asked with a smile.

"Fighting darkspawn sounds a lot better than being locked up in the Circle," she answered quickly, not giving a yes or no answer.

"Do we have any other options," Carver asked. The thought of him losing his sister to anyone made him a bit angry. She worked so hard to be free; it wasn't fair for anyone to take that away from her.

"None at the moment," Varric answered. "I'll keep looking, but we need to come up with something soon. Otherwise, we'll have a fancy expedition with nowhere to go."

"I just don't want any trouble with the Grey Wardens," Carver admitted. "They're someone you don't want to be against. Loghain could tell you that if he were alive."

"Agreed," Varric said. "I'd rather not get into a fight with the Wardens either unless we have to. Sadly, this looks like it might be our only option for a while."

"Grey Wardens aren't inhumane monsters that can't converse or strike deals," Alexandria said, shaking her head. "If you two are too scared or too proud to ask him for his help, I can. Although...I don't exactly know how to find him."

Varric smiled at her courage and humor, even if she did slightly insult him. "Supposedly this Grey Warden came in with some other Fereldan refugees not long ago. A Lowtown woman named Lirene has been helping the Fereldans. You talk to her, and maybe you can learn where he is."

"I don't know if I like the idea of you finding this guy alone," Carver said.

"I won't be alone," Alex responded. "Hewie will be with me." At the mention of his name, Hewie got up and moved to stand next to his mistress.

"Maker's breath!" Varric exclaimed playfully. "Your pooch is almost as tall as I am!"

Alex smiled a little bit, but it was hidden in the shadow of her hood. "Besides," she continued, trying to put Carver's mind at ease, "he's obviously more likely to talk to a petite woman than a large male warrior."

"I don't know about that," Varric said, teasingly. "It all depends on what his tastes are."

Alex chuckled slightly. "I'll be alright, Carver."

"I know you will be," Carver said firmly, "because I'm going with you. Just nudge me if I say something offensive."

"Oh, that reminds me," Varric interrupted once more. "I've been digging around for some work for you two, and managed to stumble on something. The carta has been selling 'Andraste's Ashes' in the Lowtown markets. A guard nearby may pay you if you take care of it."

"Thanks, Varric," Carver replied. With that, Alex, Hewie, and himself left Varric's room and exited the Hanged Man.

"I'll talk to Lirene while you take care of the carta thugs?" Alex asked him.

"Sounds good. Then we can go back to the hovel and get some rest before Aveline's ambush," Carver added.

Alexandria nodded, and her brother turned to leave. Once he was out of earshot, she looked down at Hewie and whispered, "Go with him boy. Keep him safe."

Hewie snorted before padding off after Carver. When Hewie reached his mistress' brother, Carver turned around and looked for her. He was about to insist that Hewie go back to her, but it was already too late. Alex had disappeared to find Lirene and he doubted that Hewie would have disobeyed her orders anyway. _I may be the one about to face some of the carta members, but Alex is in the most danger. You better be safe sister._

~~.O.~~

**Author's Note: I've been rather busy this summer so far which is why I haven't been posting that much. I did give you a long chapter though. :)**

**The odds are that my postings will be few and far between perhaps because I'm trying to keep myself super busy. I'm sorry for the delay in chapters.**

**But please feel free to critique my work. Let me know if there are any mistakes at all, and I will fix them for you and the other readers. Thank you!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Freedom  
><strong>

"There's Captain Jeven's office," Aveline said. "Wait here while I explain our initiative."

Carver and Alexandria stood outside of the door that closed behind Aveline. The ambush on Sundermount had been a tough ordeal. They had been well equipped and well organized for bandits. All of them thought that there might be some foul play, but there hadn't been any proof. Aside from the coin the looted from the bandits, all they had were their weapons and armor. Not only that, but when they began attacking the bandits, none of them ran away from Alex's magic. Most people feared magic, but these thugs actually "countered" it in a way and continued fighting. You either had to be well paid or have a boss that doesn't let you live if you come back with excuses. Even Hewie didn't scare them off, and there's nothing more ferocious than a mabari war hound's charge.

"I don't know how they do it where you come from, Guardswoman," came an angry male voice through the door, albeit a little muffled, "but I decide the patrols, not you and your whims! You may have been put up for lieutenant in your first year, but I'll have no show-offs in my command! Have I made myself clear?" There was a pause. "Report to your post before I have you and your Fereldan accomplice jailed!"

The door slammed open and Aveline exited the office in an angry hurry. She stopped just in front of where Carver, Alex and Hewie were standing.

"That was a lot of yelling for us doing him a favor," Carver said after Jeven had closed the door once more.

"We killed a band of highwaymen," Aveline said, not really hearing Carver's remark. She was still confused. "What does it matter whose patrol it was?" She sighed. "It's not the first time he's made me wonder like this. Something is very wrong."

"So then let's see whose toes you actually stepped on then," Carver said.

"That would be listed on the duty roster," Aveline nodded before walking to a big pole with different sheets of paper listed. Alex, Carver, and Hewie followed behind her. "What have I stepped into this time," she sighed, lifting different sheets of paper up in search of the name she was looking for.

"Aveline!" came a foreign female voice. Aveline turned to face a guardswoman with brown hair and soft eyes approaching her. "I owe you for clearing that ambush this morning. Saved me a mess of trouble."

"Brenan, that route was yours?" Aveline asked.

"It was," she answered. "Single Patrol. I'd have been dead for sure."

"So there was nothing unusual about it at all?" Carver asked her.

"It had been clear for weeks," Brenan answered helpfully. "It didn't get unusual until we heard about you and Aveline, serah. The Captain reassigned me after he heard about what you did. And I passed the satchel to Donnic for his patrol tonight."

"The satchel?" Carver asked, not understanding what she was talking about at all.

"Pay and order assignments," Brenan supplied. "Captain has us run deliveries to the outposts on light duty. The satchel is usually just an uploaded copy of the roster. The satchel for this morning, however, was heavy." As quickly as Brenan thought it was unusual, she dismissed it. "Anyway," she continued, "thanks again, Aveline. You're a good one."

When Brenan was gone, Aveline turned back to the duty roster. "So the satchel gets heavy the morning we take care of an ambush..." she mused.

"You sure you want to pursue this?" Carver asked. "This is your superior we're talking about.

"If a guard was put at risk, a good captain would want to know why," Aveline said in a justifying manner. "And if he's not a good captain, I want to know why."

"It's certainly a messy way to pass on information," Carver added. "And Brenan already sent it along."

"You're right," Aveline agreed. "Another guard is walking into that very same trap. I can't let that happen." She studied the duty roster more carefully. "Brenan said Donnic...a good man...Donnic, Donnic... I've got his route. A night walk in Lowtown today. We're going to make sure his quiet patrol stays that way." Aveline turned back towards Carver and Alex. "I'll meet you outside of the Hanged Man just after sunset. A guard's life is at stake, so please don't keep me waiting."

"We'll be there, Aveline," Carver said sincerely. "Don't worry."

Aveline gave them a weak smile of gratitude before making her way to the barracks.

Carver and Alexandria said nothing as they exited the Viscount's Keep. They still received looks of disgust from the noble men and woman, but they were a bit more guarded now since Hewie came along. They may be Kirkwall's most powerful and "important" people, but their titles and money mean nothing to a mabari war hound that could easily tear your throat out. The nobility weren't about to risk their lives on their discrimination against the less wealthy.

It wasn't as sunny as it was yesterday. There was still that annoying glare of the sun coming off the white stonework, but at least there was shade from the clouds today. Wordlessly the three walked down the long staircase from the entrance of the Keep to Hightown.

"You certainly weren't very chatty," Carver commented offhandedly while they walked on to Lowtown.

"I'm not usually," Alex replied quietly.

"You once were, though, Alex," Carver said, looking over at his sister with a smile. "You used to talk my ears off with what you learned from a book or from Father. Some days we actually had to tell you to stop talking because we were afraid you'd pass out from not breathing enough." He chuckled at the last part, remembering things as they used to be.

"Things have changed," Alex said in an emotionless tone.

Carver's smile dropped instantly. "You certainly have," he sighed.

Alexandria looked over at her brother for a second before quickly looking away again. _So have you, dear brother. You are actually starting to enjoy people knowing how you are,_ Alex thought to herself. _Did you like it when Jeven said "accomplice" and not "accomplices?" Do you like the attention, especially since you're the only one receiving it?_

"Something's on your mind," Carver stated, not asking.

Alex looked over at him. Had she not been wearing her hood, Carver would have seen the haunted look on her face. He would see what she was feeling and thinking for the first time since they arrived in Kirkwall. "I was just thinking about what Lirene told me when I inquired about the Grey Warden," she lied.

"You never did tell me how that went," Carver admitted, buying her lie.

Hewie pressed himself closer to his mistress' leg. Things were changing. And he was fearful for Alexandria's safety and future.

* * *

><p><em>Lirene's Fereldan Imports<em> had a musty and dirty smell to it when Alexandria entered the place. As she opened the door, she was surprised at the number of Fereldans in the shop. All of them were quiet except for those closest to the counter. They were making the most noise. _You would think that with the lack of jobs, less people would be in this shop trying to buy items,_ she thought as she slowly made her way through the people to the back. _No Kirkwaller would find themselves in here._ Before she made to the back, though, she saw a small chest on top of an old wooden crate. "Donations" had been scribbled on to the top. Alex remembered how nice people always were in Fereldan, always helping one another out. This cesspit of a city would have truly won over her if she didn't at least give something to those in need. She may be in Kirkwall, but she was still a Fereldan through and through.

"Will everyone just please step back!" came a woman's voice form the back of the shop as Alex's thirty silver clinked to the bottom of the chest.

"My mother's in labor! The baby's come early! Can anyone help her!?" came the frantic voice of a younger woman.

"I'll send word to the healer," came the voice of the first woman again, "but—"

"My son's hurt bad," came a male voice. "Cart overturned on him in the blasted Bone Pit."

"Everyone in your Turn!" said the first woman. Alex had made her way to the back of the store finally and saw that the voice belonged to a dark brown haired woman standing behind a shabby counter. "I promise we have donations coming in. There will be food and medicine for all of you."

There was a pause in the ruckus, so Alexandria took this time to approach the counter. The woman saw her approach and started talking before Alex could even say why she was here. "Hello, my name is Lirene. If you are seeking aid, leave your name with my girl," Lirene motioned to the girl behind her. "We serve everyone here—no one came from Fereldan without troubles. But I can't give priority to anyone who's already found work and lodging." With that said, Lirene crossed her arms and assessed Alex for the first time. A Fereldan woman coming in here with dark clothes and a hood obscuring her face that's heavily armed is certainly unusual indeed, and someone worth keeping a close eye on.

"Is there any way I can assist these people?" Alex asked, genuinely hoping she could help. She had the desire to help the two that needed medical attention, but she wouldn't say anything unless prompted.

"If you have coin to spare," Lirene answered, "we won't turn it down. Donation box is in the front." That's when Lirene noticed the weapon Alex was carrying with her. At first she only noticed the dagger strapped to her belt, however that double bladed staff reminded her of the weapon the healer always had with him. "Unless you have other skills to offer," she added quietly.

Alexandria bit her lower lip. There was her prompt, but she decided that she should probably get the information she came here for first. "I hear you may know where I can find a Fereldan Grey Warden," she finally said.

That's when Lirene got defensive. "The only Grey Warden I've heard of is sitting on the thrown. We're out of the Blight's path now. Why do you need to find a Warden."

"The healer was one of the once, wasn't he?" the girl who's mother went into labor said. "A Warden?"

"Well, he's not now," Lirene snapped. "And busy enough without answering fool questions about it."

Alexandria saw that she was going nowhere fast with this conversation. "Can we continue this conversation in the back room?" she asked politely.

At first Lirene was going to say "no" and be done with it. But there was that staff on her back again. She decided to take her chance. "Very well," they turned and exited into the door behind her. Once the door was closed behind them, she asked "What's all this about?"

"I need the Grey Warden's help," Alexandria said. "I can see that you don't want to share information on him with a stranger you don't know and can't trust, but if you can tell me anything, I would greatly appreciate it." Alex hesitated for a moment before adding, "Just as the soon to be mother and crushed boy would greatly appreciate it if I were to help them with my certain skill set I happened to be born with."

Understanding dawned on Lirene's eyes. She had found another mage that could heal. "You see what our people have to face in Kirkwall. They have no jobs, no homes. Most can barely buy bread." Lirene's tone had softened. "This healer, the Grey Warden you're looking for, he serves them without any thought for coin. He's closed their wounds, delivered their children."

"Why does he need to hide, though?" Alex asked.

"He's a good man. I won't lose him to the blighted templars."

Alexandria was shell shocked for a moment. _Another mage? Another apostate? I knew I wasn't alone but...he actually has the courage to come out of the shadows and help others with his magic. I would never put myself at risk like that._ "He—he's a mage? Alex stammered.

"He is." Lirene answered in a calm tone, almost like a mother talking to her child. "Just like you."

Alex closed her eyes for a moment, processing that information. "Then you understand that your healer is in no danger from me."

Lirene nodded, "I suppose it isn't my secret to keep, anyway. Anders has certainly been free enough with his services. Refugees in Darktown know to find the healer, look for the lit lantern. If you have need enough, Anders will be inside."

"My services are available to the two that needed a healer when I entered your store," Alex said. "For my family's sake, I can't offer anymore."

"I understand," Lirene replied. "I will inform them that there will someone who can help with go with them. First the mother, then the son." Lirene went to exit the room they were in, but turned back to face Alex. "And thank you..."

"I would prefer not to give my name."

"Well, we have to call you something," Lirene said. She paused for a moment, studying Alex. "How about 'Mockingbird?'"

"Mockingbird?"

"Yes," Lirene answered. "Mockingbird's copy the songs of other birds. I see a lot of Anders behavior in you; though, I'm sure that's how most mages in your situation act."

Alexandria nodded. _A Mockingbird helps two people that need healing magic. Mockingbirds are a myth, a legend. You can't hunt down myths nor capture legends. The templars wouldn't have much to go with if someone sold me out under the name of 'Mockingbird.'_ "That should be fine," she said before following Lirene to help the two families that needed a little bit of magic.

* * *

><p>Of course, in the version she told Carver, she never went into the back room of Lirene's shop. She never told Lirene that she was a mage. She never helped to people using magic. She never became Mockingbird. In the version she told Carver, simply asking Lirene who she was protecting made her crack and tell her about Anders. The version she told Carver didn't make him angry at her for putting her, their, lives in jeopardy. Carver didn't yell at her for using magic in Kirkwall. Carver bought the half truth story she gave him. There was no confrontation.<p>

Carver hadn't said anything throughout Alex's recollection of her and Lirene's conversation. Now that she was done telling him, he spoke, "Perhaps we can find this Grey Warden before we clear out the estate and get the will today."

"We're doing that today?"

"Why not? We've got a long ways to go until sunset."

"I suppose, you're right," Alex said, "but maybe we should see if Varric can help us. He may be a good shot and can help us with the slavers, and he's a smooth talker, so he can help us with the Grey Warden as well."

"Afraid you can't handle a few slavers," Carver responded, in jest.

"I'm more 'afraid' that you might yell at me for actually fighting against them," was Alex's retort before she pulled ahead of Carver, leaving him behind and forcing Hewie to trot a little to catch up to her as she strode in the direction of the Hanged Man.

* * *

><p>In the darkness of the Undercity, with the thieves and murderers, it wasn't hard to find the light for Fereldan refugees here. There were actually two lit lanterns that shined brightly in the stuffy, black air. Carver, Varric, and Alex had no difficulty in finding the place where the Grey Warden healer was.<p>

As they approached the door, Alex started getting nervous. She was always nervous whenever she trekked into Darktown, however, this Grey Warden mage was an unknown. She stuck close to Hewie, who padded softly behind her, and let Carver and Varric take the lead on this one. She remained in the shadows. For now.

When they opened the door, a tall blonde was standing in the center of the room, over a cot with a boy laying on it. The boy was very still. The mother and Father kneeled on either side of their son while the mage, while Anders, did his best to heal the boy. Blue orbs of light were seemingly held in his hands as he moved them over the boy, giving life to the proper spells that would heal him. Threads of the spells whispered their way down to the boy, touching the boy's skin and going through him to heal whatever was wrong.

Carver and Varric stood in the doorway, waiting for him to finish. Alex had to look over the top of Varric to see and was transfixed by Anders' magic. _He's a spirit mage! I can feel the fade closer than ever, like whenever I use spirit magic. Maybe Lirene was right in calling me Mockingbird. It's almost as if I've copied his ways exactly._

Soon the blue light from Anders' magic grew brighter and more intense. Alex could feel the power he was putting into the spell radiate off of him. Then, suddenly, the boy let out a loud gasp, and Anders severed the spell, but the mana required to sustain it until now took its toll on Anders. He had to prop himself up against a pillar that was close by as the family thanked him and left as quickly as they could. No one stayed in Darktown longer than they needed to.

When the family had left, Carver and Varric began to approach Anders once more. Alex and Hewie followed more at a distance. _They're going to provoke him with all the bravado they're walking with,_ Alexandria thought, shaking her head.

Anders had been massaging his forehead when he sensed danger. He quickly reached for his staff before turning around to face the intruders. His hand was outstretched to ward them off as he spoke in a strong voice, "I have made this a place of healing and salvation," Anders growled, sounding as if he had his own personal echo on a couple of the words. "Why do you threaten it?"

Alexandria saw her brother and Varric tense. Before they could do anything stupid, she hissed at her brother, "Remember, we're only here to talk, not start fights!"

Carver and Varric heard her, and they relaxed a little.

Anders didn't hear Alex though, and he remained poised and ready to attack. They hadn't attacked him yet, so Anders took this chance to size up those he was against. The larger one with the black hair was a warrior. He could tell by the two-handed sword he carried on his back and the way he held himself. He was the same size as Anders, but if the fight turned to physical blows, the warrior would definitely win. Another one of them was a dwarf. He carried a crossbow that was nothing like Anders had seen. The dwarf was also lacking a beard, but had seemed to grow it on his chest instead. Crossbow bolts were always a pain to deal with. As for the other one, the woman he almost didn't see she was so well concealed by the shadows. She was a mystery to him. She could be more dangerous than the other two. Maybe not as dangerous as the mabari that had stepped in front of her as soon as he had grabbed his staff, though.

"I'm just here to talk," Carver said, throwing his hands to the side a little to show he had no intention of reaching for his blade.

"We're interested in getting into the Deep Roads," Varric added. "Rumor has it that you were a Warden. Do you know a way?"

"Did the Wardens send you to bring me back?" Anders asked, untrustingly. "I'm not going. Thos e bastards made me get rid of my cat." Anders relaxed a bit, and returned his staff to his back. "Poor Ser Pounce-a-lot. He hated the Deep Roads."

Alexandria had been observing Anders for any signs of danger and to get a read on him so that she could give her brother advice. She had been expecting hostility and for there to be no trust between them at all. She had not been expecting the part about the cat though, and smiled at that a little bit.

"You had a cat named Ser Pounce-a-lot? In the Deep Roads?" Varric asked incredulously.

"He was a gift," Anders explained. "A noble beast. He almost got ripped in half by a genlock once. He swatted the bugger on the nose. Drew blood too," his voice was one of pride as he spoke of his cat. "The blighted Wardens said he 'made me too soft.' I had to give him to a friend in Amaranthine."

"So you came to Kirkwall just to escape the Wardens?" Carver asked, getting into a more serious topic.

"You say that like it's a small thing," Anders replied with a harsher tone. Alexandria nudged Carver at this point. "Yes. I'm here because there's no Warden outpost, no darkspawn, and a whole host of refugees to blend in with." Anders hung his head slightly, "And some reasons of my own."

"Talk about the expedition now," Alexandria whispered to Carver. "Be friendly about it too. He's not our enemy. But he will be if you keep talking like you just did."

Carver winced his eyes a little at Alex's remark before doing as she said. "We," he motioned to Alex and Varric, "are part of an expedition into the Deep Roads. Any information you have could save people's lives."

"I will die a happy man if I never think about the blighted Deep Roads again," Anders sighed. "You can't imagine what I've come through to get here," he snapped. "I'm not interested..." But Anders stopped himself. "Although...a favor for a favor... Does that sound like a fair deal? You help me, I'll help you?"

"If you help our expedition reach the Deep Roads, I'll do whatever you need," Carver said.

"You don't ask for my terms?" Anders asked smugly, a hint of a smirk on his lips. "What if I were asking for the Knight Commander's head on a spike?"

"Then we'd be doing Kirkwall a huge service," Alex answered quietly too herself, but not quiet enough.

Anders looked at her with a shocked but amused expression, to which Alex dropped her head and looked to the side when she saw him looking at her. She scolded herself for drawing his attention. Slips like that could cost her at some point.

"I have a Warden map of the depths of this area," Anders continued. "But there's a price." He turned and walked away from them a bit before turning back. "I came to Kirkwall to aid a friend named Karl. He's a mage, a prisoner in the wretched Gallows." A pained expression appeared on his features."The templars learned of my plans to free him, though. Help me bring him safely past them and you shall have your maps."

Alexandria's heart sank. _Templars? He wants us to fight templars?_ She wanted to slap Carver to let him know not to ask anymore, to let him know that the deal needed to be off, but she stopped herself. _If I show him any misgivings about this plan, he'll back out completely,_ she thought. _We need those maps. There's no other alternative. But templars..._ The panic she always felt with templars and guards mentioned or around rose in the pit of her stomach, threatening to smother and suffocating her. She remained frozen.

"How exactly do you plan to free him?" Carver asked. "We don't exactly stand a chance if we try to break him out of the Gallows."

"It won't come to that," Anders said. "I told Karl to meet me in the Chantry tonight. Maker willing, he'll be there alone. But if there are templars with him I swear," his voice to a dangerously harsh edge, "I will free him from them, whatever the cost." His words, they were dripping with hatred. Alex could sense it, and she involuntarily flinched from the words as if they were tangible.

"Do you really want to make your friend an apostate?" Carver questioned. He would never had asked for Alex to be an apostate, but she had been one all her life. If there were any way to change that without involving the Circle or templars, he would.

"That's such a weighted term," Anders snapped. "Yes, Andraste said that magic should serve man, not rule him. Yet I've yet to find a mage that wants to rule anything. It goes against no will of the Maker for mages to be free."

Alexandria pushed back her panic and tried to get Carver to agree to help. If she sounded confident in what the plan was, perhaps he would agree. "We're helping him, right?" she asked in a whisper.

"From what I've come to understand," Carver nodded, "forcing mages into servitude is just going to lead to another Imperium."

"That's...not usually the response I get," Anders replied, his tone growing softer, more relaxed and relieved. "Perhaps we will work together better than I expected." He glanced over back at Alexandria. He was curious about her. Throughout this entire ordeal she hadn't said a word. It was like she was just hired muscle waiting for a job to start. _Or she's hiding something,_ he thought. _She could be dangerous._

"We better be careful, though," Carver warned. "We're risking a lot if anger the templars." This was more for his sister's benefit than Anders. He couldn't care less about the Grey Warden. His sister was risking a lot. He almost wished he could convince her to stay home and not go with him tonight.

"Join me at the Chantry tonight," Anders said. "And no matter who might be with Karl, we will all walk away free." _We have to._

_We better_, Carver growled in his head. "We'll be there."

"I welcome your aid," Anders said with a nod.

Carver led the way out of Anders' little sanctuary. Varric and Hewie followed. Alexandria hesitated and watched Anders for a moment before following. _I didn't think mages could look so tough. He was a Grey Warden, I suppose, and he may have endured his share of horrors, but... He's as tall as my brother, a full head taller than me, and he looks as if he could be a warrior as well. _Alexandria was puzzled by Anders. He was an anomaly. _Then again, I have been mistaken for a rogue or warrior of sorts by almost everyone as well... But those soft, amber eyes of his...they're filled with sorrow... I probably look the same way though. Perhaps I am a Mockingbird._

Anders thought of the strange woman once they had left. She seemed so familiar in stature. But her silence still unnerved him. _What is it about her that makes me think about her? I didn't even see her face, for crying out loud._ He thought about the way she walked. _Perhaps she's the bigger guy's sister... It doesn't matter though. So long as she helps me free Karl, I don't give a damn about what or who she is._ He knew that wasn't true when he thought it though.

* * *

><p>"Well, this looks like the place," Alexandria said, looking at the ladder that led to a hidden door. "If the cellars go this deep, maybe we were important."<p>

"There's only one way to find out," Carver said. Then he added with a cheeky grin, "And before we go in, Alex, try not to cause too much destruction. I don't want there to have to be any more renovations and upgrades than already needed when we move in."

"You are so cocky, you know that?" she asked jokingly.

Varric laughed at the exchange. "You have to admit that Hawke has a point there, Alex. No point in spending more money than already required."

Alexandria shook her head before climbing up the ladder ahead of them, forcing Carver to help Hewie up since he couldn't exactly climb anywhere.

* * *

><p><em>I can't believe they actually had an ogre's head mounted above the vault door,<em> Alex thought as they returned to Gamlen's hovel with Grandfather's will. _And I thought the Orlesians had terrible taste._

Claiming the will from the slavers hadn't been that hard in all honesty. A few mighty blows, some fireballs, and a couple of pinning shots later, they had managed to cut them all down. The cellars were straightforward too. There was no double backing involved or anything. Alexandria did find something that intrigued her though: letters that were sent to him from a mage named Tobrius. It was something of her Father that Alex could hold on to until she found the mage and figured out what they were about. Carver had easily dismissed them as unimportant, but Alex felt as though they might mean something. She wasn't going to ask Carver's permission to seek this mage out. He would never agree to her going to the Gallows.

As they opened the door, they were welcomed yet again by their weasel of an uncle trying to ferret out more money. "...so I'm just saying: blood's blood and all, but you are take advantage of my hospitality... It's only fair that you make something of a...monthly contribution—"

Mother looked absolutely disgusted. "You sold my children into servitude?" she asked unbelievingly. "Now, you're asking me to pay rent!?"

Carver came up and stood next to Mother. His towering figure made Gamlen cower a bit. "Er..." he stammered. "Maybe just put something towards food..."

Carver shook his head. "We found the will."

"Grandfather left everything to Mother and us," Alexandria added. "See for yourself." She handed the will over to Mother, who looked over it carefully yet quickly.

"Er...ah...I should...maybe..." Gamlen was about to head for the door, but Hewie stood defiantly in front of it. Nothing other than his mistress' order would move him from that spot.

"'To my daughter, Leandra, and all children born of her...the estate in Hightown and all associated revenues...'" Mother read.

"We have a home, Mother," Carver said with a smile. "A real home."

"They forgave me. Mother forgave me." For the first time in a long while, Mother sounded happy and relieved. It was only for a moment though. "But... Gamlen how could you?"

"You're the one who ran away, Leandra," Gamlen accused. "What happened to 'Love is so much more important than money...?'"

"It is!"

"You didn't even show up for the funeral!"

"The twins were a week old!"

"We all have our burdens," Gamlen snarled. "Mine was looking after a life you abandoned. How long was I supposed to wait?"

Carver found himself understanding Gamlen's side of it, as much as he hated him. "If it wasn't for the Blight, Mother, would we have ever come back here?"

"I always thought I would. But...I suppose you two are Fereldan to your toes..." she admitted.

"Look, Sister," Gamlen said. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done it, but I did. And there's nothing I can do to get it back."

"I don't expect that, Gamlen," Mother shook her head. "It's enough to know Mother and Father didn't die angry. I'll petition the Viscount for rights to reclaim the estate. Maker willing, you'll have your 'house' back within weeks."

"You don't have the coin or standing to even get an audience with the Viscount," Gamlen spat back. "You've got to be someone in this city to live in that house again."

"Then I had better get started," Mother responded with fierce determination before walking to her room.

Gamlen shook his head and glared at Carver and Alex before walking off.

Alexandria wanted some time to think, but before she could, Carver looped his arm with hers and said, "We need to go for a walk and have a little chat, Sister."

She already knew what this was about. This chat was going to be about Anders and his plan to free his friend. "Yes, we do."

Lowtown was settling down now that the afternoon hours were spent. There wasn't heavy traffic of people anymore and the shop vendors looked positively bored. The sun had finally faded behind the tall buildings in Kirkwall and the temperature was finally becoming cooler. Carver and Alex walked towards the gate leading to the Docks. It one of the safer places to talk because everyone there was so preoccupied with the qunari being there that they wouldn't notice a brother and sister having a conversation about things that could end up with them in the Gallows.

"You've changed," Carver started out with.

"So have you."

Carver wanted to protest, but deep down, he knew it was the truth. "What happened, Alexandria?"

Alex was tempted to leave him in silence, but that was part of the problem, that was part of the change. She dropped her head a little. "Bethany's death and this city."

"I—I don't understand."

"When Bethany died," Alex started, "I was so lost. She was my other half. And because she was gone, I clung to you... I was so young back then. But, this city has forced me to grow up Carver," she looked at him with sad eyes. "I'm not that little girl with pigtails riding her year-old mabari anymore."

Carver nodded in understanding. "When Father died," he said, "I tried my best to make everything right for you and Bethany, like he did. I was forced to grow up then. It was almost like I became our Father for you."

"You're a lot like him, Carver," Alex agreed. "But you don't need to be anymore." Carver looked questioningly at her. "Part of the reason I'm so distant now is because I'm trying to drive you away from me. All children have to leave there parents protection at some time. That's what I'm doing with you." She stopped to face him, "We've been through a lot in Kirkwall. I've grown up. I know how to take care of myself. And I resent the fact that you believe you still have to take special care for me."

"But—"

"You can still look out for me, brother," Alex said, smiling for the first time since she's been here, "but in order for me to grow as a person and to be who I truly am, I need to take care of myself now."

Carver had to look away for a moment. He knew what she was saying was the truth. For him to be as close as they once were, he was going to have to let her control her life. She knew the consequences probably better than him, and she knew herself at the moment better than him.

"And you've changed too, Carver," Alex continued. "You love the attention you get now," she said with a smile. Her eyes were a little glossy from all the emotions she was feeling: happiness, fear, sorrow, pain. "You can finally receive it too without drawing eyes in a bad light now. And part of me thinks that you're frustrated with having to tone it down for my sake."

"I—I'm sorry," Carver stammered.

"Don't be," she smiled. "I understand. It must be tiring looking out for me all the time, so don't." Alexandria straightened herself out and stood taller. "I can take care of myself."

Looking at Alexandria, Carver couldn't understand how he never noticed before. Alex wasn't a child anymore. She was a powerful mage. She could handle herself with and without magic. She didn't need his protection anymore. But she did need her brother, which he could never truly be in Kirkwall when he was so focused on keeping her safe. "I'm sorry for not realizing that sooner, dear Sister."

Alex smiled genuinely at him. It was good to smile again. The last time had been on the boat about a year ago when they were traveling to Kirkwall. "I forgive you. Just...promise me to be my brother from now on, and not my bodyguard."

"I promise," Carver laughed before pulling her into an embrace. "It's good to have you back, Sister."

"And you, Brother."

They released one another from the embrace slowly. "Now," Alex said, "what else did you want to talk to me about?"

Carver's smile faded. "The Chantry," he started. "I don't like the sound of this plan at all."

"I know," Alex nodded, "which is why I plan to fight _normally_."

"This is going to be dangerous, Alex," Carver warned. "We aren't talking about taking out mercenaries or anything."

"I know, but we have no choice. We have to do this Carver," Alex said, gravely. "I can do this. And we won't have any major repercussions."

"Ok," Carver agreed. A few minutes ago, he would have told her he wasn't going to allow her to come, but after their heart-to-heart, he understood her one more. They had both changed, and they had both accepted and understood it. Things were better, less hostile, and less dangerous. "I'm going to head back to the Hanged Man and ask Varric's help when it comes to helping Aveline and Anders. Are you coming?"

"No," Alex answered. She turned to the waves they had found on their walk. The docks were noisy, but they were always peaceful to her simply because of the water. "I'm going to stay here and think for a while. I'll meet you there at sunset."

A nod was the response Carver chose before turning away and leaving her to her thoughts. What annoying bastards those thoughts could be.

Alexandria's mind kept returning to Anders. Why? She didn't know. But that's what kept happening. She decided to embrace the thoughts in the hope that they'd go away after she had dwelled on them for a time. _He hates the templars more than everything. I can feel it, and his anger towards them. That could be dangerous in the long run. He might act solely on his anger and forget that things could backfire on himself or others,_ she thought gravely. _ But he's helping people. He's risking his freedom and life to heal those that need it with no thought for himself either. He's doing what's right in a city that's full of wrong. _A few gulls cried out, and Alexandria looked to the sky and watched them fly above her head. _I wish I could do that._ Alex was talking about the birds' freedom to fly and Anders courage to heal others at the risk of his life. Closing her eyes, Alex remembered Anders as he was when healing that boy. He had been in a peaceful trance while using magic. The blue light cast about him accented his hair and face, drawing her attention to it. She couldn't stop thinking about him. _He looked so sad, even when at peace with his magic, like he's lost more than everyone else._

Opening her eyes, Alexandria knew what she was going to do now before the sun began to set. With determination, she walked on. She was now in control of her life, thanks to Carver. She got to decide what risks she took and what paths she chose for herself. It may not be the safest one, but it was the right one for her. When she found herself at the door, she opened it and walked inside. She worked her way around a few people before she came to stand in front of her choice.

"Is there anything I can do to help these people," she asked for a second time.

Lirene smiled, "I believe there might be a few things you can help with, Mockingbird."

~~.O.~~

**Author's Note: Ok, I know I skipped a lot of the combat in this, but that's because I really don't like the combat. It's not necessary. I will however add it in the other chapters. This chapter is just slow. **

**Also, I did have a major catastrophe planned for the brother and sister, but it seemed way to over the top, so I had them become close again in some fluff. **

**And I'm sorry that this chapter is really short... I didn't like this chapter...**

**I can't wait to get to the Tranquility mission in the next chapter after helping Aveline become Guard Captain. EEEEK! I'm so excited. I can't wait to hear reactions.**

**Anyways. Thank you for reading and please let me know if you see any errors. Thanks. **


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